How to survive getting stranded with your enemy
by Cuteblndegoddess
Summary: The head boy and girl aren't getting along and Dumbledore has a plan to help them realize that they aren't so different. No reference to HBP or DH.
1. How to work together

**DISCLAIMER FOR THE ENTIRE STORY. I DO NOT OWN HARRY POTTER, OR ANY CHARACTERS MENTIONED IN ANY OF JK'S BOOKS. I AM NOT MAKING ANY MONEY OFF OF THESE STORIES. I DO IT SOLEY FOR THE DRAMIONE FANS.**

Hello everyone. Here is a story i have been working on for quite a while. I am almost finished writing it so it will update weekly, on mondays most likely. I haven't forgotten about 'Beautiful' so that will update soon as well. Happy reading and don't forget to review.

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How to work together

"GET OUT!" Hermione screamed while trying to cover herself. Draco Malfoy was standing in the doorway of the head's bathroom smirking in her general direction.

"As if I would want to look at you, you filthy Mudblood." he commented back before turning on his heel to leave.

'I am going straight to Dumbledore' she thought as she pulled on her robes and brushed her hair.

She ran at top speed towards the headmaster's office and stopped at the statue of the gargoyle.

"Bertie Botts" she said to the statue and it sprung to life revealing the stairway to the office. She ran up the stairs and knocked on the door.

"Come in" a soft voice said. Hermione opened the door and walked over to the desk where Dumbledore was seated.

"Yes Miss Granger, can I help you?" he asked in a kind voice.

"I cannot live with that prat anymore sir. He walks in the bathroom without knocking all the time, he leaves his clothes all over the common room, and he insults me every time we meet. I think either we need a new head boy or I will resign and you can find a new head girl." she told him.

"I see." Dumbledore replied as if she were telling him about some fantastic adventure.

"So…" she asked "What are we going to do?"

"Come in Mister Malfoy." he said and the door opened right on cue.

"You called Headmaster?" he asked as if he were the perfect student and head boy.

"I was just having an interesting conversation with our head girl here; do you know what she told me?"

"Well knowing her sir, it could be anything." he sneered.

"She has just told me that you have been behaving in a manner not becoming of a head boy. Is this true?" Dumbledore asked politely.

Draco flushed a deep shade of pink.

"No sir. I think Granger here misunderstood" he said flatly, not looking in her direction.

'I DID NOT MISUNDERSTAND YOU LITTLE PRAT!" Hermione screamed.

"See headmaster, she overreacts to everything." he said coolly, smirking at her.

"Will you both just stop?" Dumbledore said raising his voice slightly, but putting fear into both of them. They stopped arguing immediately and turned to face the headmaster, both pursing their lips tightly.

"What are we going to do about this situation?" Dumbledore asked calmly.

"I will resign as head girl." Hermione said sadly.

"Then Mister Malfoy will lose his position as well." he replied.

"Why punish me?" he scowled.

"It's both of you as head boy and girl or neither of you. So what should we do?"

Both Draco and Hermione sat there in stone silence, not looking at each other, but staring straight ahead.

"No solutions? I see. Well I think I might have one, an assignment. Both of you will work on together. You will go to muggle London and gather some items I have written on this list. You will surrender your wands to me right now."

Draco and Hermione looked stunned. They looked at each other briefly, before looking back at Dumbledore.

"WHAT?" they both said in almost unison.

"I think both of your hearing is just fine, you will surrender your wands to me. You are going into muggle London, and will have no use for them there. I will be sending you by portkey, the return portkey will only work when you have completed the task in the envelope." he handed a large envelope to Hermione. "Don't open it until you get there, now step forward and take a hold of this urn on the count of three. Ready? One…two…three!"

Draco grabbed the right side and Hermione the left. In a flash they were being pulled back behind their bellybuttons and whirled around. Seconds later they landed with a thump on a soft sandy surface.

"What the…" Draco yelled when he saw where they had landed. Hermione opened her eyes and felt faint from the shock. They were not in muggle London at all. They were on a beach somewhere, somewhere warm. Her hands dug into the sand as she looked up and down the shoreline.

"Where are we?" she asked absentmindedly, forgetting for a brief moment that she was there with the world's biggest prat.

"How the hell should I know Mudblood? The portkey must have malfunctioned." he grabbed a hold of the wide urn and tried to make it work. "It's not working, damn it all." he threw the portkey on the ground.

"It won't work until we do the task Dumbledore set, remember?" she said.

"Yeah, well how the hell are we supposed to do the task when we are stuck here?" he threw himself back on the sand.

"The letter." she exclaimed as she tore open the envelope. Her eyes scanned the words before she read aloud.

Miss Granger and Mister Malfoy,

It seems that you cannot get along while at Hogwarts. I thought foolishly that being head boy and girl you could put your petty differences behind you and try to get a long for school unity's sake. But I see that was just a dream in an old man's head. Your task is simple. You two will be able to portkey back to Hogwart's when you can get along and behave like responsible young adults. I will owl your assignments to you once a week and you can owl them back the next. There is a small hut up the hill that you can stay in. it is primitive, you will have to get along to survive. The portkey will know when you able to be together without fighting. I hope this adventure proves to be as fulfilling as I imagine it to be.

Albus Dumbledore

Headmaster of Hogwarts

"What does that mean?" Draco yelled. "Get along? Us? Shit we will be here forever." he said as he tossed the letter into the wind.

Hermione suddenly burst into tears.

"I am going to fall so far behind; I will never pass my N.E.W.T.s now."

"That is what you are worried about? Crap, I am stuck on a little hell hole of an island with a Mudblood. I have no wand, no means of getting food and water and this stupid bird is worrying about tests." he stood up and kicked sand.

Hermione looked up at him with contempt.

"Well, I have worked hard my entire life to get the best grades; I didn't have my daddy pay for my good marks. And now I am stuck here with you, an evil little ferret and I am going to miss the most important lessons we are going to learn, all because you had to act like a rich, spoiled little ass. I am not happy about this either, but we need to get along quickly so that I can get back to my life. Agreed?" she yelled, nearly out of breath.

"Agreed." he said. "Ok, let's shake hands, tell the stupid portkey that we are friends and get back to school. I have dates and lots of things planned I don't want to miss." he said with a knowing smirk.

"Fine." she said sticking her hand out, he took it and shook.

"There, see we are getting along, now let's go home." they both took sides of the portkey. Nothing happened.

"We are getting along!" Draco screamed. "Come on you worthless piece of shit." still nothing.

He chucked the portkey down the beach. Hermione ran to grab it.

"You stupid git! Do you want the tide to wash it away? Then we will be stuck here forever." She picked up the urn and dusted the sand off of it.

She walked at top speed towards the hill in the distance. She would get there first and think of a plan. 'What did I do to deserve being stuck here with him?' she thought.

He ran after her.

"Wait up, I don't know where I am going, were you just going to leave me there you filthy little Mudblood? I am a pureblood, I deserve some respect from you." he yelled but she kept her fast pace towards the little hut in the distance. He struggled to keep up.

She reached the hut first. Bunk beds on one wall, a tiny kitchen on the other. A small bathroom off to the side. Two chairs in front of a fireplace. All in one room. Her posture sagged as she thought of living that close to him for as long as it took for them to get along, which the way things were going would be forever. She pictured herself at age 80 sitting here with Malfoy, not speaking to one another and him whispering 'Mudblood' every time she turned her back. She groaned at the thought as she flopped in the chair. A minute later Draco came in panting; having ran after her up the hill. He took one look at his accommodations and grunted heavily.

"Merlin you have got to be fucking with me." he said. Hermione just glared. Like she was any happier about this.

"You might as well get used to it Malfoy, we could be here a while." she said, not looking at him. His face had turned red with anger. He was not happy about this.

"I get the bottom bunk." he said as he staked his claim to it by lying on the mattress.

"NO, THAT'S THE ONE I WANTED." Hermione screamed. She stood up and walked over to the beds.

"I got here first; besides I don't see the word 'Mudblood" written anywhere on here." he sneered not looking at her either.

"FINE!" she yelled climbing up the small ladder to the top bed. She laid down on it and stared up at the ceiling.

They spent the next hour in complete silence, both lying on the bed staring at the ceiling, thinking of ways out of this mess.

Hermione's stomach started to growl. She needed to find some food and fast. She also needed some water. She hopped off the bed and started for the door.

"Where are you going?" he demanded.

"To find some food and water." she replied grabbing the urn to carry water in.

"Good, get some for me too" he said stretching on the bed in a lazy manner.

"I don't think so ferret." she spat back "Go get your own."

"I am not getting food in a muggle fashion. Isn't that what your family does? You can find some for me too."

"If you want to eat, you get it yourself, that goes for water too."

"I can get water you fool, we are surrounded by it if you haven't noticed." he said in a snide manner.

"Well, if you drink that I wont have to worry about getting along with you any more as you will be dead." she told him.

"Yeah right, you just don't want to get it for me, fine you little bitch. I can fend for myself. I am a Malfoy after all." he stood up and prepared to follow her out into the open.

"Shove off." she said. "You can go on your own, don't follow me." she walked off quickly into the open woods. She figured she would fill the pockets of her robes with berries and nuts if any were available. Luckily, she had been camping several times in her youth and knew some basic survival skills. She laughed to herself when she thought of Malfoy foraging for food. She doubted if he knew the difference between poison berries and ones that were safe to eat.

'Would serve him right' she thought. But then the good side of her kicked in. 'but on the other hand if he dies I will never get off this island.'

"Malfoy" she yelled. He casually strolled over to her and gave her a dirty look.

"Yes?"

"I will let you come with me to show you what is safe to eat, after this thought you are on your own. I don't want you to die out here and me be stuck here forever." she said flatly.

"I don't need your fucking help. See?" he held out a handful of deep red berries.

"So go on and eat them." she said laughing under her breath.

"What?" he demanded.

"No, you know what is safe, you went into the muggle wilderness all the time as a child right?" she giggled.

He threw the berries on the ground and wiped his hands on his robes.

"Fine, I need help then. Let's get on with it."

Hermione turned and he followed her deep into the forest. They gathered nuts, berries, some bananas and coconuts that grew on the other side of the island. They also found some other citrus fruit trees and some wild corn that grew in spurts all over the island. When they had all their pockets could carry they set back for the hut. Before they had set off she had noticed that there was a tap on the tub in the bathroom, so boiling water would not be necessary.

They headed back to the hut where she ate hungrily and drank some water. He merely looked at the food as if it were poison.

"Muggle food not good enough for a pureblood?" she asked in between bites. He looked at her with contempt before grabbing some berries and sitting silently across the room from her.

When Hermione went into the bathroom she found that there was only a toilet and tub. She groaned as she turned on the water only to discover it was only cold, no hot. She put the urn on the small camp stove and lit it so she could boil some water for her bath. After five trips of carrying boiling water to the tub she was ready to take her bath. She set the urn back on the counter and went into the bathroom.

"MALFOY!" she screamed as she found him sitting in her nice warm bath. He had climbed in while she was retuning the urn. He was laid back in the tub, completely exposed. He smirked at her before asking;

"Like what you see Granger?" he did not blush in the least.

"YOU GIT!" Hermione screamed, "That was my bath, you could make your own."

"Why should I?" he asked, "when you did such a nice job for me?" he said grabbing the bar of soap off of the side of the tub and lathering his smooth pale body.

Hermione stormed out of the bathroom and slammed the door behind her.

'Gods how I hate him. We are going to be here forever because he is such an ass!' she thought to herself. 'Wait, I can get some revenge. I will take the bottom bed like I wanted to begin with.' she strolled over to the bed, took off her robes and skirt leaving only her t-shirt, and slid into the bed. She was just about asleep when she heard him leave the bathroom.


	2. How to skinny dip

**A/N Hey all, sorry I forgot to update yesterday. I had a long day and fell asleep early. Thanks for understanding :) Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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How to Skinny dip

"I thought I told you that this was _my_ bed. Are you hard of hearing or just stupid Granger?" Draco yelled as he found Hermione lying on his bed.

"No, I heard you Malfoy, I just figured since you took my bath, I would take your bed." she smirked at him, and he was taken aback by his smirk coming off of her lips.

"Well I am sleeping in this bed Granger so get out or move over." he said peeling back the covers.

"You wouldn't dare." Hermione gasped.

"Watch me." he said mockingly.

"Well I am not moving, so if you want to tell everyone that you slept in the same bed as me, go for it." she folded her arms and stayed in her current position.

"Well it would improve your reputation to tell people you slept with me, but try to keep your hands to yourself." he said as he slid into bed next to her wearing only boxer shorts. Hermione was in shock and didn't know what to do next. She desperately wanted to get up into the top bunk, but on the other hand she didn't want to appear weak because then he would continue to walk all over her. So she lay there, unmoving, arms folded. Minutes later he was fast asleep and she lay there pressed against the wall so she wouldn't touch him. She was completely annoyed with the situation, but she was so tired. Soon enough she drifted off into sleep wondering what Harry and Ron thought of her sudden disappearance.

Morning broke and Hermione woke with a start. Malfoy's arm had draped across her waist in the night. She was pinned to the bed. She tried to lift his arm but he was like a sack of potatoes.

'Damn' she thought 'how am I going to get up with this git touching me?' she wriggled her body and his head lifted and looked into her big brown eyes.

"What the hell are you doing Granger? Why did you put my arm around you? Couldn't resist huh?" he smiled mocking her scowling expression.

"I didn't you jerk!" she yelled back at him. "It was you who couldn't resist I guess. When I woke up your arm was wrapped around me, what would your family think?" she mocked him back. "You, Slytherin prince sleeping with a Mudblood like me."

His face turned a pale pink as he pulled his arm off of her.

"Whatever Granger, what's for breakfast?" he stood up and stretched.

"Whatever you find, I told you yesterday I wasn't going to find food for you." she stood up and stretched as well, forgetting she was only wearing a t-shirt and panties. Draco's eyes traveled from her face down to her exposed lower half. He smiled evilly before she realized what he was looking at.

"Pervert!" she screamed running into the bathroom. 'Damn Malfoy' she thought as she pulled on her skirt. Were they supposed to wear the same clothes the whole time they were there? She hoped not. She found a brush in the bathroom and tried to tame her curly locks. It was a lost cause. She pulled it back into a ponytail and went back into the living room. Draco casually strolled past her into the bathroom, her eyes narrowed as he walked past. Minutes later he emerged fully dressed, still sneering.

'Merlin this is going to take forever' she thought. She stood up and walked over to the door and when she stepped outside she let out a short gasp.

"Malfoy, come here." she stood there staring at a heap of school books and several changes of clothing, and another letter.

"What is it now? Fancy another grope while I am trying to sleep?" he said.

"Uh, no. our books are here, and a change of clothes." she said handing him the package with his name on it. Hermione opened the letter and read it aloud.

Miss Granger and Mister Malfoy,

I hope this letter finds you well and you are starting to get along. Enclosed you will find your school assignments which you are to do together, some changes of clothes and a flagon of pumpkin juice that will magically refill whenever it is empty. (You didn't think I would leave you without any magic did you?) I know you both may be frustrated over the situation, but trust me it is for the best. If you need anything special, owl it back with your school work next week. Until then have fun.

Albus Dumbledore

Headmaster of Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry

Hermione held up the flagon of juice. Draco went to grab for it, but she pulled back.

"Finders keepers." she said teasingly.

"He said it was for both of us." he stated, looking like a spoiled child.

"So." she replied "This is for taking my bath last night." she took several large gulps of pumpkin juice. He watched her drink longingly. He was so thirsty, and she was throwing it into his face how much she was enjoying it. After drinking over half she wiped her mouth on her sleeve and grinned at him. Then she handed him the juice.

"I don't know what you were worried about; it said it would refill itself. Geez, you are worse than a little kid." with that she picked up her things and went into the hut. He gulped the juice like a dying man until it was running down the sides of his mouth.

'That is better' he thought before standing up and following her in. She was already elbow deep in books and parchment, and didn't even look up when he came in. he rolled his eyes at her before sitting on the edge of the bed watching her study.

'Does she ever do anything else?' he thought to himself and he snickered about it.

"What?" she demanded.

"Nothing"

"You were laughing."

"So, is it against your rules to laugh?"

"No, but…"

"But what?"

"What were you laughing at?"

"You"

"What about me now? My teeth too small? Hair too big? Smarter than you? What?"

"Don't you ever do anything other than study?"

She looked shocked.

"Uh…no I do other things."

"When?"

"When what?" she demanded.

"When do you have time to do other things?"

"Whenever." she said sticking her nose back into 'Very Advanced extremely difficult potion making'

"What kinds of things do you do?" he asked. She wrinkled her nose at him.

"Why? What do you care what I do?"

"I don't, never mind. We will just be stuck here forever." he flopped back on the bed and looked up at the bottom of the top bunk.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly. "I like to read…" he rolled his eyes. "I also like to swim, dance, write poems…when I am home I go to the movies and watch television."

He looked at her like she was mad.

"Movies and televiswhat?" he asked.

"Uh…I forgot you don't know anything about muggle things. Movies are kind of like moving pictures that talk, same for television."

"Uh…whatever." he said.

"So what about you?" she asked.

"What about me?"

"Are you always this dim or are you just acting? What kinds of things do you like to do out of school?"

"Well, quidditch for one, I like to read as well." he sat up and tried to think of other things "I guess I don't have that many hobbies either." he smiled slightly, and to his surprise she smiled back.

"Ok, fair enough. Are you going to start on our homework or not?" she asked.

"Yeah, I guess." he said sitting at the small table next to her. He picked up his book and began the lesson.

"Hey Granger, how are we supposed to practice potion making without a cauldron and supplies?"

She shrugged her shoulders.

"Maybe Dumbledore will send them for next week, for now we should just concentrate on reading the lessons." she replied and continued reading the lesson. He slammed his book shut and stared at her.

"This place is driving me nuts already. I am so bored. I am going to go for a walk and find some food." he stood up and walked out the door.

'Well' she thought 'at least we are kind of getting along.' and then she continued her reading.

Draco strolled of into the woods alone. The quietness of the forest calmed him as he walked filling his pockets with berries and things along the way. He had walked quite a ways when he came across a waterfall. Without thinking he stripped off all of his clothes and dove in the cool water. He felt free and alive and for a brief time forgot he was trapped here with Granger. The water glided over his smooth chest and back sending chills up and down his spine. He dove under the water near the waterfall and when he emerged he was faced with a pair of caramel eyes.

"Just couldn't resist again eh?" he said floating on his back, spitting water in the air.

"Whatever Malfoy. You know Dumbledore sent swim suits, you didn't have to resort to skinny dipping." he didn't blush, but noticed her eyes trailing down his naked body. He felt no shame and swam closer to her floating on his back and gliding through the water.

"I will just take these back to the hut for you." she said smiling sweetly in a mock baby tone.

"Granger give me those clothes back." he demanded, swimming closer to the edge of the lake.

"These clothes?" she said mockingly. "Can I have the bottom bunk?"

"NO, that is my bed." he shouted.

"Then these are my clothes." she replied and started to walk back to the hut.

"Granger wait…ok, you can have the bottom bunk, now can I have my clothes back or do you enjoy seeing me naked?" he raised one eyebrow at her and she laughed.

"Ok" she tossed the clothes onto the shore and walked away thinking of his smooth pale skin swimming elegantly through the water.

'Get a grip Hermione' she thought as she reached the hut and sat back down at the table and picked up her book. Minutes later Draco walked into the hut and set his berries and other findings on the small counter.

"Help yourself" he said before sitting in the chair in front of the fireplace.

She looked shocked.

"Serious Malfoy?" she asked not believing he would be so generous.

"Yeah" he said, not looking at her.

"Ok, thanks."

She grabbed some berries and bananas and ate heartily.

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Back at Hogwarts news of the head boy and girl's disappearance had spread. Everyone in the school was talking about it, especially Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil, Hogwarts biggest gossips.

"Where do you suppose they went?" Lavender asked Harry at lunch the following day.

"I have no clue, all I know is Dumbledore sent them on an assignment and they are not to return until it is complete. I asked him how long it would take and he said 'as long as it takes' whatever that means." Harry replied. Ron looked sad and lost. He had been planning to ask Hermione out since the start of the year.

"It's not fair." Ron said poking his lunch with a fork absentmindedly.

"Well Dumbledore knows best." Harry told him as they finished their lunch.

"Hermione must be going out of her mind being unable to study and being stuck with that prat Malfoy." Ron said.

"I know it. N.E.W.T.s are this year too, she was looking forward to them." Harry replied as they walked out of the great hall and towards their potions class.

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Meanwhile Hermione was studying at the small table in the hut. She was annoyed because a lot of her homework involved using spells and without a wand all the studying was practically useless. She slammed the book shut in frustration and looked out the window into the clear blue sky. Maybe a walk would do her good, or even better a swim in the waterfall lagoon. She grabbed the suit that was sent with her spare clothes and changed in the bathroom. It was a modest one piece suit, black. She threw a t-shirt on top of it and walked down to the lagoon. Malfoy had been gone all morning, she had no idea where. It was so hard to get along with him, not that she was making much of an effort. It took all she had just to be in the same room with him, let alone make an effort to get along. She desperately wanted to get back to school though, so she would have to use her brain to come up with a plan to get along with him long enough to get back to school. She removed her t-shirt and dipped her toe into the cool water. It was chilly but refreshing. She inched her way in and soon was swimming deftly through the blue water. She closed her eyes and imagined herself back at Hogwarts with her friends. Sitting by the lake studying with Ron and Harry, sitting in the Library for hours on end learning about everything she could get her hands on. A cool breeze blew across her face and she breathed in the fresh sea air. A plan, that's all she needed, was a plan. Some way to get along with that slimy git so she could get home. She racked her brain thinking, and before long a plan started to form in her head. She dove below the water and emerged on the shore of the lagoon ready to put it into action. 


	3. How to befriend your enemy

**A/N For those of you who have read my other stories you may realize that I used part of this story 'the naming of Draco' part in 'Reunion'. There is a good reason for this. I wrote this story before that, and had never intended on finishing it. So I stole that part of it to use in 'Reunion' However, I decided to leave it in this story because I like the story of 'Draco the constellation' and thought it fit in with this story. Thanks for all the postive reviews. Happy Reading and don't forget to reveiw!

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How to befriend your enemy

When she arrived back at the hut Malfoy was sitting at the table studying. She decided to be positive and cheerful around him. Treat him like Ron or Harry. Maybe he would return the sentiment. It was worth a shot.

"Hi!" she said cheerfully.

"Uh…hi." he replied looking up from his book.

"How is the studying going?" Hermione asked.

"Good. What has you in such a good mood?" he asked, one eyebrow raised.

"Just went for a swim, cleared my mind. Want to study together?"

"What are you playing at Granger?" he asked suspiciously.

"Just being optimistic." she replied. "I'll be back in a minute, going to go change."

His eyes followed her out of the room and into the bathroom.

'What is going on here?' he thought. Minutes later she came out of the bath wearing a short summer dress that Dumbledore had sent from her room. Her hair was pulled up into a high ponytail. She looked refreshed and happy.

"So, what are we working on?" she asked with way too much enthusiasm.

"Ancient Runes, my mind is going fuzzy from staring at these pages." he said rubbing his eyes.

"Here, let me take a look. Oh, you mistranslated this. It should be just the opposite." she motioned on the page.

He looked at her in awe for a moment.

"Uh…thanks. I need a break. Join me for some pumpkin juice?" he asked as he got up from the table and went into the small kitchen.

"Sure." she replied. 'Hey, this positive attitude is working.' she thought.

He returned to the table carrying two glasses of juice and some bananas. She smiled sweetly at him causing him to almost choke on his juice.

"So." she said.

"So?" he said confused.

"What do you want to talk about?" she said.

"Talk?"

"Yeah, well I thought if we were to get along we should talk."

"Oh, I guess. I have never talked with someone like you" he said sheepishly.

"Like me?" she asked, anger brewing. She knew what he meant.

"I mean a mud…muggleborn." he corrected himself, trying to maintain this calmness between them.

"Well what do you want to know about me?" she said.

"Uh…I don't know." he said blushing. "When is your birthday?"

"September 19th." she replied. "My turn. When is yours?"

"June 5th." he said quietly.

"A Gemini eh? Split personality." she giggled.

"I don't know what else to ask you Granger." he said looking around.

"How about calling me Hermione?" she asked.

"What?"

"My name is Hermione, not Granger."

"Okay Hermione." a small smile played on his full pink lips.

"Well is there anything you want to know about me?" she asked.

"I don't know…this is new for me."

"How about I ask you some questions?" she smiled.

"Okay, fire away."

"Tell me about your childhood." she said.

"That is a pretty broad question Gr…Hermione." he said frowning.

"Okay, just about before you came to Hogwarts."

"Not much to tell. I grew up at Malfoy Manor in Wiltshire. You have met Lucius. I am glad he is dead. My mum still lives there. We are close. I don't know what else to tell you."

"Ok, that was a start." she smiled again.

'She has a great smile' he thought to himself.

"I grew up in London, I guess you knew that. Both of my parents are non-magical, I guess you knew that too. Uh…I went to regular school until I got my letter from Hogwarts. Got top grades. None of my old friends know that I am a witch. Uh…I guess this is harder than I thought." she laughed. He smiled back.

"Yeah it is. I guess you can't force friendship can you?"

"No, I guess not." she looked at the floor awkwardly.

"So, now what?" he asked her.

"I don't know. I thought if we got to know each other we could get along enough to get back to Hogwarts. But I guess I am not that interesting." she smiled.

"It's not that, I guess we just don't have that much in common." he said. He climbed on the top bunk and put his hands behind his head.

She sighed heavily. This situation was impossible. Yeah they were not arguing every moment, but they were no closer to actually getting along then they were the first day they arrived. Without warning fat tears ran down Hermione's face. She felt as if the situation was hopeless. She missed her friends and her classes so much. This whole thing was his fault anyway. How could she have let him get her so upset that she went to Dumbledore? How could he have sent them out to the middle of nowhere trapped in this hut together?

Draco sat up on the bunk and stared at her. She looked like she was crying. Over what though?

'This sucks.' he thought as he lay back down. Had he not made enough effort? He wanted to get back to school just as bad as she did. He had quidditch, and dates and lots of other things to occupy his mind there. All he had here was her and books. He looked out the window and the sun was just beginning to set. They had been there 3 days. Three of the longest days of his life. She was right though. In order to get along they would have to talk and stuff.

"Ug." he thought.

"Hey Gr…ahhh…Hermione, why don't we go for a walk, try this again?" he hopped off the bed.

"I guess we can try, we can't stay here forever can we Malfoy."

"Draco." he said.

"What?" she said startled.

"My name is Draco. You asked me to call you Hermione; I am asking you to call me Draco. Deal?"

"Deal. Let's go."

They walked out of the door and into the twilight of the woods. The sky faded from indigo blue to peachy pink and was streaked with white fluffy clouds. They walked in silence down to the beach and sat on the shore looking at the tide that was advancing on the white sand.

"It is beautiful here isn't it?" she asked softly, not really thinking of who she was talking to.

"Yeah it is." he answered her.

"I always wanted to visit a tropical island like this. Like maybe on my honeymoon or something."

"I am never getting married." he told her.

"What? Why?"

"I don't want to end up like my parents. They were forced to marry." he said looking into the darkening sky.

"So it was an arranged marriage?"

"Yeah."

"Wouldn't you want to marry if you found someone to love?" she asked him.

"No." he said honestly.

"Oh, okay."

"I am betrothed to Pansy, since we were born."

"Are you serious?" she couldn't imagine being forced to marry anyone.

"Yep, but I already told my mum I wouldn't do it. Pansy is ok, but frankly she is annoying and I certainly couldn't spend my life with her."

"Oh," she said "I thought you guys were a couple."

"We were, but it's just for appearances. How about you? Going to marry Potter?" he grinned.

"No, he is like my brother." she told him.

"What about Weasel?"

"No, they are both like my brothers. My second family. The Weasleys are so close to me, they treat me like a second daughter."

"A second one, do they have another one?" he asked shocked.

"Uh…yeah. Ginny, short red head, dates Harry." she rolled her eyes like it was common knowledge.

"Oh, sorry. You were saying."

"You want to get married someday then?"

"Yeah, someday." she stared into the starry sky that was beginning to twinkle with bright stars.

Draco lay back on the sand and looked up as well. He caught a glimpse of a dragon in the sky, not a real one of course, but the constellation. Draco the dragon. His mother named him for this constellation. She had told him the story of Draco when he was little.

"Have you ever heard the story of Draco?" he asked her.

"Excuse me? The story of Draco? What story about you should I have heard?" she propped herself up on her elbows and looked into his silver eyes.

"No, Draco the dragon." he pointed up towards the sky to the string of stars that made up the constellation.

"Oh," she said. "No, I haven't."

"Well my mum told me this story when I was little. When the goddess Hera married Zeus she gave him three golden apples as a wedding gift. Zeus treasured the apples more than anything and kept them in the garden of Hesperides for safekeeping. Atlas owned the garden and a fierce dragon named Laden carefully guarded the apples.

Meanwhile Hercules was working hard to accomplish his twelve labors, purging the sins of murdering his family. His 11th labor involved obtaining the golden apples. Laden the dragon was a faithful guard, allowing only Atlas to approach him. Knowing his, Hercules made a deal with Atlas. Atlas had the task of carrying the world on his shoulders but he quickly grew tired of the task. Hercules offered to carry it for him while Atlas stole the apples. He agreed and forgot his obligation to Zeus.

Laden was napping when he heard Atlas approaching. He glanced at his master and went back to sleep. Atlas took the apples, quickly realizing that he no longer had to carry the earth on his shoulders. He told Hercules that he would deliver the apples himself. Hercules knew what Atlas was up to. He told Atlas he didn't mind carrying the globe, but first he would need to get a shoulder pad to rest it on. Atlas took the globe without suspecting Hercules, and Hercules quickly took the apples and left the garden before Atlas realized the deception.

Hera and Zeus were enraged because the dragon failed to protect the golden apples because he was the true guardian, not Atlas. To punish the dragon Hera placed the creature among the chilly circumpolar constellations to guard the heavens forever. Never resting, never setting."

"Wow, I never knew all that." she said staring back up at the velvety black sky.

"I was named after that constellation." he told her. "My mum loved that story."

"My mum named me after a Shakespeare character in 'The Winter tale', she was going through her Shakespeare period. I think she was a bit mad when she did it." she blushed. "I wish she had picked a different name."

"It's not as bad as mine anyway." Draco said looking at the starry sky.

"I like yours." she admitted. "It's unique without being weird like mine."

He laughed. He had not been so relaxed in a long time, and he had to admit to himself he was enjoying his present company.

"This is nice." he said quietly before realizing that he said it aloud.

"It is." she replied. "See we can get along when we want to."

"I guess miracles do happen" he chuckled.

"Well, you're not so bad." Hermione laughed.

"Thanks, uh…you too. Ready to go back?"

"I guess," she said standing up and brushing the sand off of her dress.

He looked at her as if it were the first time. Her long hair blew in the light summer breeze, the dress she wore floated around her tiny frame, and the moonlight illuminated her skin so that she glowed with it.

"wow' he said softly as he stared at her.

"Excuse me?" she said, not hearing his comment.

"Nothing. Just thinking aloud." he said quickly.

"Ok, ready?"

"Yep"

They walked in silence through the woods and back to the tiny hut. Hermione went into the bathroom and changed into a long white satin nightgown. It was modest, but still beautiful. She laid on the bottom bunk and covered up, closing her eyes immediately.

He changed into some flannel pajama pants and climbed into the top bunk. He lay there in silence for a moment or two thinking of her on that beach.

'I need to get a grip. This is Granger, we are only getting along to get off of this island right?' but he wasn't so sure about that. She had looked beautiful tonight, even he could admit that. But he also had enjoyed talking to her, for the first time. Talking to girls was not part of his personality. Dating them, snogging, that was more him. But he had enjoyed their conversation when it was not forced. It flowed from them like they had always been friends. Maybe they would get off this island after all. Or maybe they wouldn't. He smiled and fell promptly asleep.


	4. How to write to your friends

**A/N It's Monday, update time! And a bit of good news, we sold our house! Bad news? We have to be out by the end of this month! So both this story and 'Beautiful' might have to go on hiatus for a week or two while we get situated. But we will worry about that then. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

* * *

**

How to write to your friends

They both awoke the next morning relaxed and happy. Hermione hopped out of bed and went into the kitchen to grab a bite to eat. Not much was left and she was starving.

"Draco,"

"Yeah."

"I think we need to go look for food, you up for a walk?"

"Sure, just let me get dressed." he replied pulling on a shirt and shorts from his clothes pile.

They walked through the woods in silence looking for different foods that were not poison. Nuts, berries, bananas and coconut were all they could find.

"I wish we had some protein or something, I am not a vegetarian." he said rubbing his stomach.

"Do you know how to fish?" she asked.

"No."

"Good thing I do, but we have nothing to fish with. Run back to the hut and grab the urn will you?" He looked at her oddly but complied, returning minutes later with the urn that had gotten them into this mess. He handed it to her and she dipped it into the cool water of the lake lagoon. She submerged it completely and threw some berries at the bottom hoping that it would work. Soon enough 4 or 5 tiny fish swam into the urn picking at the berries. Hermione sprung into action and lifted the urn out of the water trapping the fish inside.

"There." she said proudly. He looked at her in amazement. "Let's go eat."

They walked back to the hut where Draco was given the job of cutting up the fish for Hermione to cook. When she walked back outside she saw him standing there staring at the fish, holding a knife in one hand and a disgusted expression on his face.

"Having trouble?" Hermione asked.

"No." he shot back.

"Are the fish ready?"

"Again, no."

"Why?"

"They just aren't, okay?"

Hermione stifled a giggle.

"Okay." she said before walking into the hut.

Draco just looked at the fish on the wood stump. He had never done anything remotely close to this in his life, but he didn't want to look like a total wimp.

He approached the stump looking at the fish that were still flopping slightly. He wrinkled his nose and poked one of them with the knife. It wriggled and he jumped back a bit. He straightened up his posture and tried again. He was so hungry, but he just couldn't do this.

"Granger, get out here." he yelled.

"Yeah" she said poking her head out of the door.

"I can't do this, I am going to screw it up, here." he said thrusting the knife at her.

"Big bad Draco Malfoy is afraid of killing a wee fishy? What is the world coming to?" she laughed.

"Very funny." Draco sneered. "I just don't want fish guts all over me."

"Ok, so I will only clean enough for me, deal?" she said as she plunged the knife into the fish's stomach pulling from head to tail and scooping out all of the insides. Draco looked pale like he was going to vomit.

"No, please Granger, I am hungry too. We were getting along, can't you just do me this favor?" he whined and pleaded with large grey puppy eyes.

"What are you going to do for me?" she asked smugly, smirking at him in a un-Hermione like way.

"What did you have in mind?" he said inching closer to her and winking. She brandished the knife which was covered in fish guts at him and he backed off.

"How about boiling the water for my bath?" she said wiping her hands on the grass.

"Depends, can I join you?" he said only half joking.

"Can you possibly control yourself for more than five minutes?" Hermione asked.

"Just kidding, it's a deal." he said.

"Okay. I'm going to cook these up, it will be ready in fifteen minutes." she smiled genuinely at him.

A little while later they were eating a pleasant meal together. The fish were quite good, and she had fried up some bananas as well. When every bit was gone she motioned for him to start the bath. He spent half an hour lugging water from the tub, to the stove, back to the tub and so on until the bath was full. She smiled sweetly at him every time he passed with another urn full. By the time he was done he was sweaty and had taken off his shirt.

"Ready." he told her flopping on the chair.

"Thanks." she replied strolling into the bath and half closing the door behind her. She promptly stripped off all her clothes, (which smelled like fish guts) and hopped into the warm bath. She grabbed the shampoo and washed her long hair first and then the soap, scrubbing her hands thoroughly.

In the meantime Draco had walked over to the bathroom door and peeked in the crack. He hadn't gone this long without female companionship since he was 15. Even if it was Granger, a quick peek might give him enough to take care of his problem on his own. She was soaping up her arms and then her legs. She moved and there they were, creamy white breasts poking through the bubbles. He felt a familiar stirring in his shorts. Swallowing slowly he closed his eyes and imagined her body, soapy and naked, smiling seductively at him. He pressed his forehead against the frame of the bathroom door and began to stroke gently. Images of her swam to the front of his mind. His throat was very dry as he peeked through the crack of the door every few seconds. Then on the edge of climax, he kept them closed for a bit longer. Wanting to see in person what he was only imagining at that moment. That's when it happened. With his eyes closed he didn't see Hermione exit the tub and dry off before heading for the door to grab her clothes. She opened the door swiftly and Draco, whose head had been resting on it, fell forward with his hand inside of his pants. His face planted hard against the wooden floor and Hermione screamed in surprise.

"What on earth are you doing Malfoy? Were you watching me?" she said reverting to call him Malfoy even though they _were_ on a first name basis previously.

"I…uh…" he stammered pulling his hand out of the front of his shorts and trying to conceal the hard on that was pushing against the fabric of them. Hermione's eyes wandered downward and she gasped and blushed when she saw what he was trying to hide.

"Oh…my…gods." she said slowly, backing away from him and into the living area.

"Look, it's not what you think, I just needed to go to the bathroom really badly…and I…uh, was just about to ask if you were almost done. I didn't see anything." he stuttered.

"Right."

"Honestly."

"I hate liars Malfoy. Don't insult my intelligence by lying to me now. Tell me what you were doing!" she demanded.

He looked at her oddly. Surely she knew what he was _really_ doing didn't she? He was highly embarrassed already. Why was she going to torture him into telling her what she already knew.

"I'm waiting Malfoy. And don't sit there and try to think of an excuse. Were you planning on stealing my towel? Dousing me in cold water? What?"

Draco couldn't help but laugh.

"What is so funny?" she asked. He looked her over from head to toe, her hair was still dripping wet and she was naked but for the towel.  
"Granger, sometimes you are so thick." he said. And he immediately knew it was the wrong thing to have said.

"Just because I don't have the body like all the girls you usually date doesn't mean that there is anything wrong with it." she said hotly. Her body was flushed red as she made more of an attempt to cover herself up.

"That's not what I meant." he tried to explain. "I just meant that I thought you already knew what I was doing…"

"You know what? Forget it! I don't want to know. We are going to be stuck on this bloody island for the rest of our lives. I'll never see my two best friends again. My mum and dad are probably worried sick about me, I usually write every week while I'm at school. All because you can't put aside our petty differences and get along." she said. Her large brown eyes were filling with tears. "Get out of the way so I can get dressed and then do my homework." she said glaring at him. Draco was at a loss for words. He hated seeing women cry. And even though she was who she was it still bothered him. He rolled his eyes and sat down at the table staring off into the distance. A tiny speck appeared out the window, one that was growing increasingly closer to the hut. Draco recognized that it was an owl. The owl had several packages tied to it's legs. Draco ran to greet the owl and relieve him of his burden. The owl hooted affectionately and Draco gave him some leftover berries and water before he flew over to the bed and perched on the edge.. Hermione walked out wearing shorts and a t-shirt with her wet hair in a bun.

"What's that?" she asked him.

"Stuff from Dumbledore." he replied. There were several letters addressed to Hermione, and only one addressed to him. From his mum, Narcissa. "Here." he said resentfully handing her the letters. "There is one from Dumbledore here as well." she said tearing open the parchment. She read aloud.

* * *

Miss Granger and Mister Malfoy,

I hope things are going swimmingly. Stress usually brings people closer that is why I sent you with no wands. Enclosed in the packages are your potion making things and a few personal affects from your rooms Also enclosed are letters from friends and family. I caution you not to tell them where you are, we have told everyone the original story about you two in muggle London and need to keep it as such. The only ones who know are your parents Miss Granger and your mother Mister Malfoy. To say that they are most unhappy is an understatement. But not to worry. I have explained that if you two cannot learn to get along, that a new head boy and girl would have to be found. And that would effect your future careers. If you need anything else, send it with the next owl.

Your servant,

Albus Dumbledore

* * *

"He is barking mad." Draco said returning to rummage through his things.

"I'm sure he has a master plan, although I'm not quite sure what that is right now." she replied skeptically.

"Right." he tore open his mum's letter.

_

* * *

Dearest Draco, _

I was most disturbed to receive a letter from Headmaster Dumbledore about your recent behavior with regard to Miss Granger. How many times have I tried to break your pattern of most disturbing behavior set forth by your father? Do you see where it landed him? In Azkaban, that's where. And after that a death befitting of a traitor. And now you are 'imprisoned' as well. Please, for all of our sakes do whatever you need to in order to keep your reputation, and the reputation of this family out of the rubbish bin. Your father has done enough to damage us as it is. Because of his actions , and his unsavory business dealings before his death, I may have to sell the manor and find something smaller. Write back if you can.

Love,

Mum

* * *

"Sell the manor?" he read aloud. Would she really have to?

"What did you say?" Hermione asked as she unpacked her potion ingredients.

"Nothing, just a letter from home." he said sitting back down at the table and reading the letter again.

"Oh, well I have four letters to read so I'd better get to it." she replied, not meaning it in a gloating manner, but that's how Draco took it.

"Well isn't that grand? The golden boy and the weasel rallied to write to their favorite bookworm. Just rub it right in." he said with malice in his voice.

"I wasn't…never mind." she said shaking her head before reading her letters. One from Harry, Ron, Ginny and her parents. Hermione recognized Harry's writing immediately.

_

* * *

Hermione, _

Where on earth are you? Dumbledore said you were in London. Why haven't you written? I bet its hell being stuck with Malfoy. How long do you think this 'task' is going to task? We miss our head girl terribly and hope you come home soon.

Harry

* * *

Hermione read the letters from her parents (Very disappointed that you would stoop to his level…Do you want this to affect your future career?) and the one from Ron (When you get home I'll take care of ferret boy…come home soon…) Finally she reached Ginny's girlish handwriting and opened the letter happy to finally have someone to talk to.

* * *

Hermione, 

I can't believe my best friend is stuck somewhere in Muggle London with the hottest guy in her year! (Other than Harry of course)Talk about lucky! (wink) So tell me what you have been doing? What is he like outside of school? Is he being civil to you? The whole school is speculating on where the two of you are, some of the things they are saying would make you laugh. Like that the two of you have been carrying on a secret affair for years and you finally eloped. Lavender thinks that the whole 'hate thing' is a put on and that you two are madly in love. I nearly choked on my pumpkin juice when she said that. Anyway write as soon as you can and fill me in on all the dirt.

Ginny

* * *

Hermione wrote back quickly to everyone except Ginny. She would need a way to tell her what was really going on without getting caught. She would be able to research the spell needed to turn her ordinary diary into a two way diary with Ginny's, that way they would be able to talk back and forth freely. Finally after she looked up the spell (while Draco tried to see what she was writing) she wrote it in the letter for Ginny and put it with the other letters quickly tying them to the owls leg before getting ready to send him off. 

"You writing back to your mum?" she asked.

He shrugged his shoulders and went back to his potions.

"Fine." she replied shortly before sending the owl out the window and watching him fly off towards Hogwarts.


	5. How to lose control

**A/N Hello all! Busy packing here so I'm sorry for the later than usual update. Things here are super hectic, and the kids are keeping me on my toes. I am working on a 'Beautiful' update so it might be done sometime this week. Thanks for all the well wishes! Happy reading and don't forget to review!!

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**

How to lose control

A few days later, Ginny was sitting in the Gryffindor common room when a reply letter from Hermione arrived.

* * *

Ginny, 

I had to laugh at the rumors. But I can't tell you where I am in a letter. You know that diary I gave you for your birthday? Well I have a diary here as well. Just use the spell I have enclosed and say my name after the incantation. Then we can talk back and forth without being caught. Do it as soon as possible as I am going crazy alone here with no one to talk to.

Love,

Hermione

(Ps the incantation is Dualisis.)

* * *

Ginny read the letter twice and then found the dusty pink diary that Hermione had bought her for her 16th birthday and set it on the bed in front of her. She had never really planned to use it because in her opinion sixteen was way too old for a diary. And after all the trouble she had in her first year with that diary she felt that any diary was trouble. Still Hermione had found a brilliant way to talk to her so she set out to do the spell. Pointing her wand at the book she muttered "Dualisis Hermione Granger" and a small purple spark flew out of her wand and into the diary. 

"Wicked." she said admiring Hermione's resourcefulness. She opened the first page of the diary and was shocked to see that Hermione had already written in it.

* * *

I knew you would be able to do that spell! Anyway I am in hell Gin, no really. My own personal hell. Dumbledore has trapped me here with Draco sodding Malfoy. And we are NOT in muggle London. We are alone on a deserted island. No wands, no magic. And we can't come back to Hogwarts until we can get along, so bloody well never. I have tried being nice to him. I've tried to be positive but now I am only positive that I will be here until I am an old lady. He is much harder to live with here than at Hogwarts which is leaving me wishing we were back there and I had just ignored him. How are Ron and Harry? What are they thinking? I wrote Harry back and gave him some diluted version of where I am and what I am doing. You can't tell any one else otherwise. I trust you Gin. Write back soon and don't forget to wipe the page with "Evanesco' so that all the nosey girls in Gryffindor can't read it. 

Love,

Hermione

* * *

Ginny pointed her wand and said "Evanesco" watching the ink disappear off the paper. She took out her quill and began to write;

* * *

Hermione 

I can't believe you are trapped on a deserted tropical island with Draco Malfoy! What any girl wouldn't give to be in your shoes, or should I say your bed? If only he was a mute he would be perfect! But I understand your misery. Harry and Ron are still confused (Not saying much is it?) about where you are and what big assignment Dumbledore had for you. I'll assure them that you are telling the truth. You are not missing much around here. Ron is going out with some Hufflepuff girl. She's a twit. I expect it'll last a week or so and then he will go back to having wet dreams about you. Harry is still so sweet to me. I'm very lucky so I assure you if you tell him about my jealousy of you being there with Malfoy I will deny it and hex you into next week. Try and write back as soon as possible. Life is boring here without you.

Ginny

* * *

Hermione sat on the bottom bunk waiting for Malfoy to come back with some food when her diary suddenly glowed purple. 

"Ginny!" she said excitedly opening the book and reading what Ginny had written. She laughed.

"What's so funny?" Draco asked dropping an armload of berries and fruit onto the table.

"Nothing." she giggled

"What's that?" he asked pointing to the diary.

"My diary." she said defensively. "And it's well protected so that only I can read it. So don't even think about trying."

"Like I'd want to read what you wrote about that red-headed git. Got your knickers wet I suppose?"

"You git! I told you already that Ron and I are like family. I would never think about him…"

"On top of you? Pants around his ankles, kissing you sloppily?"  
"Gods! You are disgusting! Is that all you think about? Do you think of your friends like that? Well Pansy I'm sure, but what if I had you picture Goyle pinning you to the wall…groping you? Licking the back of your neck before he…"

"SHUT UP GRANGER!" he yelled trying to get the mental image she had just described out of his head.

She smirked. Actually smirked at him. He was livid.

"I am not, and never will be gay."

"And I am not, and never will be in love with Ron or Harry."

"Fine." he said.

"Glad we got that cleared up. Even if it will lead to many nightmares to come."  
"For the both of us." he grinned. "I didn't know you even pictured things like that."

"I try not to." she said, her face filling with flush. He was still grinning madly.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing."

"Tell me!"

"It's nothing really. I just like seeing you all riled up. It's good for me. It's almost as good as being back at Hogwarts annoying you."

She stuck her tongue out at him.  
"Careful…" he warned.

She tilted her head at him, not quite understanding what he meant. He shook his head at her and sat down in the chair opposite her and sighed.

"Did you finish that ancient runes essay?" she asked trying to make small talk.

"Most of it. It's hard to concentrate on runes when you have…well when you have other things on your mind."

"Like what?"

"Just things. Things that are my concern. Things that you can't possibly understand."

"Why because I'm do dense?" she asked, blood boiling at the surface.

"No! Because you are a…never mind."  
"A WHAT? A WHAT EXACTLY?" she said putting her face inches from his. Her hair was becoming wild and frizzy again

"A VIRGIN YOU ANNOYING BINT!" he shouted standing up to meet her fierce glare. He was quite a bit taller than she was but she stood her ground going toe to toe with him in a death gaze. The word virgin rattled her a bit, how would he know that? But she didn't let on.

"And how would you know?" she said rather quieter.

"Everyone knows that. Do you think that no one talks about you in Slytherin? Just because you are in Gryffindor doesn't mean that the girls of my house don't talk." he said, his hot breath inches from her own face. "Most of the girls say the only guy you've ever kissed is that rock head Krum. And that was only because he wanted in your knickers. And when you didn't give him what he wanted he left for Bulgaria never to be heard from again." Draco smirked at her.

Hermione's face went deep red, in a good imitation of Ron's.

"HE-WENT-BACK-TO-BULGARIA-BECAUSE-THE-TOURNAMENT-WAS-OVER-YOU-MISINFORMED-LITTLE-FERRET!" she said speaking every word as clearly as she could. "And we used to write each other all the time." she added.

"Oh well letters and one bloody snog. That makes you an expert on men right?"

"No, but just because I am not a whore doesn't mean I don't know anything alright? I mean my two best friends are men."

Draco huffed.

"You call those two men?"

"Yes, I do."

"So what, they come back from dates and fill you in on the details so you can write a book about it sometime in the future. 'How a bookworm learned the birds and the bees'." He laughed out loud at that.

"You…you…" she said, trying to think of something to say. Her face was red and she could hear her heart beating in her head.

"Oh, that hurt." he said sarcastically.

"I know more than you think!" she said lying through her teeth. She was not going to let him make her feel like some childish little school girl. She was 18, a woman. And just because she didn't give in to every boy who came sniffing around her, didn't mean she was an amateur.

"Did you practice on your mirror?" he laughed. His sides actually hurt from laughing at her. It felt like old times.

That was it. She stood up in front of him and grabbed both sides of his head before pulling his face down to hers. She looked intensely into his light silvery eyes and pressed her full lips against his. At first he was frozen, not knowing how to react to this. And not knowing how to admit to her that he was wrong. She was a bloody brilliant kisser. Soft at first, her lips just barely making contact with his. Then she ran her tongue across her own lips wetting them before deepening the kiss. Both of her hands were still on each side of his face making him feel like she was in control. So he grabbed her head and brought her up onto her tiptoes, running his tongue along her lips. She opened her mouth to allow him in as his nimble fingers ran through the tangle that was her hair. A feeling in the pit of her stomach was telling her something was different about this kiss. His tongue was wrestling with her own as she let her hands go from the side of his face into his silky blond hair. He too let go of her face and instead used his free limbs to pull her body closer to his. She felt her chest pressed tightly to his. Her throat felt dry. After what seemed like an eternity she pulled back a bit, gasping for air. Her eyes avoided his and her face was flushed and glistening with a slight amount of sweat. His blond locks were plastered to his forehead as he let go of her shoulders and tried not to look at her as well. Without a word she walked away and out the door into the darkness. He decided not to follow her. He needed to take some deep breaths and sit in a tub of cold water.

Hermione made her way down the path and towards the beach where they had first arrived on that god forsaken island. She sat on the sand, her toes skimming the tide and looked up at the sky. Her heart was still pounding. She tried to catch her breath but was failing miserably. What had just happened? She had let him taunt her until she lost control. But Merlin he felt good. His lips were soft, not like Viktor's. Viktor's were rough because of the cold weather and wind burned from playing Quidditch. Draco's felt smooth and velvety. She was sure that he must have used some kind of potion on them. She tried to push it from her mind as she stared up at the inky blanket of endless stars. The night sky was clear as she finally regained control of her heart and breathing. She decided that she would just have to forget about it and pretend it never happened.

"It's just the stress of living here." she said to herself.

And for a moment she believed it.

Draco ran the tub full of cold water, stripped and sat down in it quickly. The cold water sent shockwaves through his body but it served its purpose. The throbbing in his groin immediately subsided. But the irregular heart rhythm was another thing. Who bloody knew Granger had such a wild streak in her? It felt so good to have her lips on his, better than he would ever admit to anyone. Not that _anyone_ would ever find out about it. No, he would have to keep this particular escapade to himself and pretend it never happened.

"It's just being cooped up here with her." he said aloud. "And the lack of female company."

But he didn't believe it. Not even for a second.

He heard her come back into the cabin and assumed she went to bed. When his extremities felt sufficiently numb he stood up and dried off. He pulled a pair of pajama bottoms on and went to find her lying on the top bunk.

"I thought…" he said to her before she interrupted.

"You can have it. It just doesn't seem that important anymore." she sighed.

"Oh right. Well, goodnight." he said climbing into the bottom bunk. The smell of her skin on the pillow filled his nostrils.

"Goodnight." she said rolling over and trying to fall asleep.


	6. How to kill a chicken

**A/N Well this is the last chapter of this story that will be posted while I am living at our old house. I am sad but happy at the same time as our new house is much larger, but also won't be finished closing on for a few weeks. So we are staying at my parents. This is good because i will have much more time to write. I am almost done with the next chapter of 'Beautiful' so look for an update next week. Thanks so much for all of your well wishes. Happy reading and don't forget to review!!

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How to kill a chicken

Some hours later after Hermione heard the resonant snoring of her roommate she pulled out the diary and began to write to Ginny.

* * *

Ginny,

I hope you are up. This nightmare keeps getting worse and worse. I don't know how long I can live with him. Tonight we had our worst fight since we arrived. He teased me about being inexperienced with men. Just because I am not shagging anything that moves like he does. I swear. I may end up in Azkaban for murder before the school year is over. He just thinks he is SO good looking that no woman can resist him. Like any self-respecting woman would want to be with some pale, skinny, blond arrogant prat. Gods I can't wait to get off this island!!! Write back soon and save me from this ferret.

Love,  
Hermione

* * *

She tossed and turned trying to find a way to fall asleep. But the kiss that they shared kept swimming to the front of her mind. It made her feel silly and ashamed of letting her emotions get the best of her. After hours of restlessness she finally fell asleep.

When morning rolled around she awoke to find the bottom bunk empty.

'Probably hogging the bathroom.' she thought to herself as she climbed down and headed that way. But to her surprise the bathroom was empty, as was the area surrounding the small cabin.

"Hmmm…" she said aloud before returning to the cabin and boiling water for her bath. When the water was finally warm enough she stripped down and climbed in.

Draco had awakened at the crack of dawn. His night was restless as Hermione's was, so when the sun peeked through the windows he decided that that was good enough. He threw on a t-shirt and went hunting for food. He gathered some bananas, berries, some large citrus fruits that looked like grapefruits and some kind of nut. He put all of his finds inside of another shirt he brought. Then he heard a noise on the east side of the lagoon. He placed the shirt on the ground and went to investigate. He crept quietly hoping that whatever it was wouldn't hear him before he could find it. There was a small rock formation and under the alcove of it were several chickens. His mouth watered at the sight. If only he could catch one, or maybe two. Quietly as he could he took of his t-shirt and crept closer. He held his shirt out to throw over the closest or slowest chicken. The chickens heard something but continued to peck at the ground looking for food. Draco cursed himself for not bringing some of the berries or nuts to lure them closer. Finally he was within striking range. He threw his t-shirt over one of the larger chickens that were sitting on a nest. She squawked and flapped her wings but Draco had her held in his arms tightly. He had even grabbed the three eggs sitting in the nest. He snapped its neck quickly and it went limp in his arms. He felt a great sense of satisfaction with himself. He was the provider now. The alpha male. He picked up the other shirt that was filled with fruit and such and with a spring in his step he headed back to the cabin. He stowed the dead chicken outside for the time being. She was not in her bunk when he arrived, but he heard her splashing around in the bathroom. He had been unable to keep her kiss off of his mind last night and frankly it disturbed him deeply. But today was a new day and if they could just get along for a little while maybe that crackpot Dumbledore would let them return to Hogwarts. So he set about making a nice breakfast for the two of them. Although he had no idea where to start.

'This should be easy.' he thought looking around the small kitchen for a knife. He found one and began to cut up the bananas, grapefruit and berries for a fruit salad. What was worrying him was cooking eggs. He had never done so in his life. And hoped to never do it again. He looked at the frying pan and turned the flame on underneath it. He took the eggs and broke them into a bowl. He was half expecting partially developed chicken carcasses to fall out but luckily for him they didn't. He took out a fork and beat them until they no longer resembled egg innards. Then he poured them into a pan.

'This isn't that hard.' he said to himself. He stirred them until done before dumping them onto two plates. He put some fruit salad onto each one and poured glasses of pumpkin juice. He walked towards the bathroom door and knocked cautiously.

"Granger?" he asked.

"I'll be right out. I know you bloody can't wait to have the bathroom to yourself." she snapped back. A moment later she flung the door open and stomped out of the bathroom. Her hair was wrapped in a towel and she had an annoyed expression on her face. Lack of sleep made her cranky too, he noted.

"Hungry?" he asked.

"I'm not going to get you food Malfoy. I am tired."

"I wasn't asking you to." he said leading her to the small table.

"What? Where did you…I'm just…"

"Speechless." he smirked.

"I mean food. Actual food. Did Dumbledore send this?" she asked sitting down and taking several bites of the hot scrambled eggs.

"No. I went out and got food this morning. I'm not completely useless you know."

"How did you get eggs? It's not like there is a colony of wild chickens here." she joked.

"Actually there is. And guess what we are having for dinner?" he said wickedly.

"YOU DIDN"T!" she said slightly outraged but also somewhat grateful.

"I did. It's out in back."

"You killed a chicken? An actual live chicken? On your own?"

"I did." he smirked proudly.

"Wow." was all she could say before taking another bite of eggs. He sat down across from her and began to eat enthusiastically. They sat in silence eating before she finally broke down and said it.

"About last night…" she started.

"Let's not."

"No, it's ok. I know how hard it was to gather food for breakfast. And I just wanted you to know that I accept." she said smiling her beat smile.

"Accept? Accept what?" he asked her.

"Your apology of course. I know that saying you were sorry must have been too hard for you so you made me this nice breakfast. It was very unlike you."

"I'm not apologizing." he said darkly.

"What?"

"I said I'm not apologizing. I didn't say anything to you last night that wasn't true. And a Malfoy never apologizes for speaking the truth."

"The truth? You wouldn't know the truth if it bit you in the arse." she shouted.

"You know it is." he replied. "I don't feel guilty about anything I said."

"What about what we did?" she asked not looking at him. She had brought it up first. And he hated her for it.

"And what was that?" he asked. As far as he was concerned it was something that never need be mentioned again.

"You know." she said getting quite annoyed.

"No, I don't." he said. His cold eyes staring at her.

"Are you bloody serious?" she asked. The towel fell off of her hair and the wild, wet mess fell to her shoulders.

"I have no clue as to what you are referring Granger."

"I'm talking about the two of us, right there, snogging like there was no tomorrow." she said, feeling slightly disgusted with herself for it.

He didn't answer her. He sat there with a look of complete and utter horror.

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"It's not like I liked it or anything." she said turning away from his cold eyes.

"How could you not?" he smirked.

"SEE! You know exactly what I am talking about."

"Bugger."

"What was that all about last night?"

"You kissed me. I have no idea why. I can just assume that you have lived here alone with me so long that your will power has faded and you couldn't help yourself." he smirked again.

"How dare you! You arrogant self-absorbed, ignorant, egotistical prat! I have no desire to kiss you now or ever! I just wanted to prove to you that I wasn't as inexperienced as you thought. And I could tell that it shocked you." she said folding her arms over her chest.

"What shocked me is that your lips were touching mine. And frankly I was repulsed."

Hermione's face flushed and she blinked some unexpected tears away. Draco looked at her with a blank expression on his face.

"Do you think what I did didn't repulse me as well? I was just trying to shut you up about what I have and haven't done with whomever I choose." she lied.

"That just shows how inexperienced you really are if you think snogging me was repulsive. I on the other hand have reason to feel that way after all you are a mud…"

"Don't say it Malfoy!" she screamed.

"Blood." he finished.

"That's it!" she said throwing her hands up in the air. "WE ARE GOING TO BE HERE FOREVER!" she sat down on the bottom bunk and started crying. Draco had no idea what to do. He only half meant what he had said to her. And he did want to get off of this island as quickly as possible. And yet he couldn't stop fighting with her. Truthfully, it excited him.

She sat there sobbing. Thinking of her friends and family and wondered if Dumbledore would just let her resign her head girl position. She grabbed her quill and a piece of parchment and penned a quick note to him. She knew the school owl would not be back for a few days so she would have to wait it out. She placed the note under her pillow and wiped her eyes on her sleeve.

"Look…" he started.

"Just stuff it.

"I was just trying to…"

"I don't want to hear it!"

"If you would just shut up for one bloody minute woman!"

"I am resigning as head girl. Living here with you is not worth it."

"What?"

"You heard me. Having 'head girl' on my resume is not worth putting up with you. I can't do it."

"I thought you were stronger than that Granger."

"Well you were wrong." she snapped back.

"If you resign I lose my position as well!" he shouted.

"Well too bloody bad! I'm not putting myself through this hell for some lousy blurb on my future resume. You can buy your way into any job so what would it matter to you?"

"Well everyone in my family has been head boy. My father, my grandfather. It's a matter of Malfoy family honor."  
"I can't believe you used 'Malfoy' and 'honor' in the same sentence." she huffed.

"My family does have honor!" he said defiantly.

"Yeah. And I'm really adopted from a pureblooded wizarding family and I've been keeping it a secret from everyone at Hogwarts."

Draco's face turned extremely red.

"You know what? GO AHEAD AND QUIT THEN!" he roared stomping out the back door and into the woods.

She threw herself on the bed and sobbed into the pillow.

The sun was setting before Draco returned to the cabin. His skin was bright red from being in the sun all day and he had a weary expression on his face. Hermione didn't acknowledge his return. She sat there reading her runes textbook. He threw his t-shirt onto the lower bunk before grabbing the pumpkin juice and drinking several big glasses. His eyes stared intently at her. He was waiting for her to say something. Anything. But she continued to ignore him. He went into the bathroom and shut the door behind him. Something had to change. He didn't want to go back to Hogwarts and have his head boy badge ripped from his chest in front of the entire school. What would his mother think?

He closed the lid of the loo and sat down.

"Bloody hell." he sighed. "Why does my life have to be so complicated?"


	7. How to survive a storm

**A/N Hello everyone! Well we are moved into my parent's house for the time being. Waiting on our mortgage company to get off their butts and process the loan for our new house. So we will be here for a few weeks. Gives me more time to write at least. :) Well I hope everyone's October is starting off good. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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**How to survive a storm**

The next day went by with no school owl showing up. Hermione was forced to work with Draco, albeit in almost stone silence, until the owl did arrive. They worked together to clean and cook the chicken the next night. Draco was extremely repulsed, but did the work anyway. That night they ate their best dinner since they arrived still not speaking to each other. They cleared the dishes in silence and did complicated astronomy charts in silence as well. All Hermione knew is that if the school owl didn't arrive soon she would lose her mind. While she was sitting at the table finishing her chart she saw her diary glow purple on the top bunk. She quietly got up and climbed up; waiting to see what Ginny had to say.

* * *

Hermione, 

Wow, Malfoy got you riled up didn't he? It's too bad you hate one another or all that pent up energy could be used for other purposes. Wink, wink Anyway, if you don't try harder to get along you could be stuck there all year, all the way through N.E.W.T.s, and I know how much you are looking forward to that. Ron is still with the twit, Lavender and Seamus have something going on, and I think Parkinson is screwing Zabini with Malfoy being gone and all. So all and all another year here. Harry and Ron miss you, but I think it has something to do with their enormous homework load and less to do with your sparkling personality. Try to get along with the ferret; I need my best friend back here to help me deal with it all.

Missing you,  
Ginny

* * *

Hermione laughed at Ginny's unique bluntness before writing back.

* * *

Ginny, 

I may be back sooner than planned. I have written a note to Dumbledore asking to resign as head girl. The school owl hasn't shown up yet so he doesn't know. I can't live here another moment. Of course that means that Malfoy is going to lose his head boy position as well but I told him that I don't care. He is not happy, but when is he ever happy? Anyways, don't tell anyone that I might return early. No one is supposed to even know where we are or why.

See you soon (hopefully)

Hermione

* * *

She closed the diary and stretched out silently in her bed. It was just beginning to get dark. In the distance she heard the low rumbling of thunder. Her stomach turned. Ever since she was a little girl she had been terrified of thunderstorms. When she was four a bolt of lightning caught their house on fire. Luckily it didn't cause much damage, but since that day she got sick to her stomach when she heard the sound of thunder. When she was small she would run into her parent's room and climb into bed with them. That always made her feel safe. Then when she got to Hogwarts she would run to Harry or Ron and spend the night in their dorm. Taking turns in each of their beds. She knew that some of the girls in her dorm said she was doing more with Harry and Ron than she let on but she knew it wasn't true. They were her brothers, if not in blood, in spirit. And neither boy ever tried to make her feel uncomfortable about being there. 

She took some deep breaths, attempting to keep her nervousness to herself. She didn't want Malfoy to know her weakness. It would just give him another reason to tease and torture her. Hermione's mind started to wander.

'We are in the middle of the ocean, what if a hurricane blows up?'

She shifted uncomfortably.

"This hut is small and made of wood, very flammable." she noted. 'What if lightning strikes it? Where will we live? What if an owl never shows up? Or gets blown off course by the high winds?'

She was beginning to get very sick to her stomach. The thunder sounded as though it were getting louder and closer. Then it happened. A flash of lightning and the sound of it striking very nearby. Rain was pelting the trees outside, making loud rapping sounds on the rooftop. She sat up on her bunk and looked over at Draco to see if he were watching her. He was slumbering lightly in front of the fireplace, a book on his lap. Every flash made her jump as the storm moved closer and closer to their tiny deserted island. Even when the thunder was so loud she could hardly hear herself think, Draco never stirred. Panic was setting in. Her breathing was low and shallow, and sweat was pouring down her face. She needed air, but going outside was out of the question. She got down off of the top bunk and sat in the chair opposite Malfoy. Lightning struck again, this time it rumbled the small cabin. This time Draco woke up and looked around groggily.

"What's going on?" he asked her.

"Storm." was all she said, turning her eyes away from his so he wouldn't see her fear.

"Hmmm." was all he said and he went back to reading his transfiguration book.

Hermione couldn't believe it. He sat there calmly while the island was being tore apart by this massive storm. Her heavy, ragged breathing started again. She clutched the side of the chair every time lightning struck or thunder clapped.

Draco noticed her digging her nails into the chair but didn't say anything to her. He also noticed her labored breathing and the wild look in her eyes every time she heard thunder. He smirked to himself.

"Not scared of storms are you Granger?' he said silkily.

"No, no, of course not. It's just stuffy in here, but I can't open the windows because of the rain." she said, her voice shaky.

"Well I'm going to bed." he said standing up and stretching. He stripped off his t-shirt and climbed into the bottom bunk. Hermione muttered a goodnight and continued to sit there in utter terror. She missed Ron and Harry. She needed them now more than ever. She was alone and scared. And then her body betrayed her. Tears started to pour from her eyes. She sobbed as quietly as she could in the chair, but was unable to stop. Her hands went to her face and covered it the best she could. But it was in vain. Draco had heard her crying.

"Bloody female hormones." he grumbled.

"It's not hormones you arse!" she shouted. Taking her mind off the storm for the first time.

"Then what is it?" he said annoyed. He was tired and wanted to sleep.

"It's none of your business." she replied.

"Then quit your whining. I want to get to sleep." he spat at her.

Hermione lost it. She cried louder and harder than ever, only stopping when the lightning got too close for her comfort.

Draco put a pillow over his ears and tried to ignore her, but she was so loud that he could no longer take it.

"Bloody hell! Will you shut up already?" he spat at her again.

She couldn't take his screaming anymore. Not caring what he thought she yelled at him.

"I can't you jerk! I'm terrified of storms okay?" her whole body was trembling. "I have been since I've been little!"

Draco sat up on his bed and looked at her.

"So whenever it storms you turn into a blubbering idiot?" he asked quite seriously.

"NO!" she screamed back. "I, unlike you, have friends that help me through it. I usually climb into bed with one of them."

Now she had peaked his interest. Granger spooning one of the other Gryffindor girls was too exciting to resist.

"Oho, which one was it?' he asked, moving a bit closer.

"Which one was what?"

"Which of your housemates did you cuddle up with when it stormed?"

"Why?"

"Just wondered."

"Ron and Harry of course." she replied, before a loud clap of thunder made her jump involuntarily.

"Pothead and the weasel? Ugh…you sure know how to ruin a man's fantasy. I thought you were going to say that Brown girl or one of those exotic twins." he replied. His wicked mind wandering.

"Why would I crawl into bed with one of them? I hardly speak to them."

"Well they are your roommates."

"It's just as easy to walk up to the boy's dorm and crawl into bed with my real friends." she said defensively. The storm was getting worse and she was becoming more and more frightened.

"So what you said about them being like family wasn't true was it? Not if you are sleeping with them."

"Sleeping is all we do you foul-minded arse!" she said standing up again and pacing the room.

"Right. So are you going to sit here and cry all night?"

"I don't know. It depends if we survive this storm." she said fearfully.

"Merlin."

"I'm oh so sorry if I am bothering you Malfoy, but I can't help it." she said with venomous sarcasm.

"Well just try to keep it down." he said returning to his bunk and lying on his side facing away from her. But after several minutes, the storm reached a peak. The thunder and lightning were so loud that even if she hadn't been sobbing loudly he couldn't have slept. He stood up and walked to the door opening it slightly. Outside was pandemonium. Palm trees were uprooted; branches and debris were flying around in the high winds. Was he the only one that noticed that despite all the chaos in the cabin he could hardly hear the wind? He shut the door again and it was as if it wasn't storming at all. They could still hear the lightning and thunder, but the wind was not affecting the cabin at all. Draco deducted that Dumbledore must have thought to protect it in case something like this happened. He glanced over at her sitting in a chair, her face white with terror and her hair clinging to her skin with sweat. And then he felt it. A tiny little pang of pity. It was small, but when you are not used to having pity on anyone, one little feeling can seem much larger. He walked over to her and kneeled by her side. She didn't even look at him. Her cinnamon eyes fixed on the opposite window where the storm was raging on. Gingerly he took her by the hand. She had a child-like expression on her face as he led her over to the bottom bunk and pushed her softly onto the bed.

"What are you…" she asked.

"Well I can't bloody sleep with you sobbing like that, can I?" he asked, the corners of his mouth turning upwards into a half-smile.

She shook her head no and lay down on the bunk, facing the wall behind it. Her ears were pounding loudly. She felt the weight of him lower the mattress before he scooted up behind her and placed one arm around her waist. Her whole body stiffened when he did this. As if she didn't know what to expect next. She could feel his breathing on the back of her neck. And his pounding heartbeat on her back. She realized that he was naked from the waist up and it made her feel even more nervous. Lightning struck a tree outside and they could hear it crash down near the side of the cabin. She jumped a bit, but tried to keep her composure.

"Calm down Granger," his husky voice said "Dumbledore wouldn't let anything happen to us."

He was right, and she knew it. There were probably spells and protections on this cabin that she couldn't have thought of in her wildest dreams. And besides, at that moment she felt safer than she could ever remember being before.

* * *

Back at Hogwarts Ginny read Hermione's latest diary entry. And she was determined that despite her word to Hermione that she wouldn't let her best friend ruin her career chances of that slimy little git. She threw on a dressing robe and set off for the headmaster's office. When she reached the statue she didn't have a password so she simply said: 

"I need to speak to the headmaster. It's very important about another student's life!" she made it sound more important than it really was. To her surprise the statue moved out of the way revealing a staircase which she climbed promptly. At the top was a wooden door. She pulled the knocker and heard the kindly man's voice say "enter"

"Ah, Miss Weasley, to what do I owe this late night visit?" he asked.

"Headmaster, sir…I need to tell you something."


	8. How to try again

**A/N Early update this week! Yay me! Things are going well in this story, its so easy and fun to write. So I hope you enjoy it and don't worry, there will soon be some Dramione action...although there may be a bit in here (Grins in an evil sort of way!) Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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How to try again

Hermione awoke to find herself face to face with Draco. His arm was still draped around her waist, and though it was a comfort last night, this morning it felt like a ten-ton weight. His face was only inches from hers and he was sleeping deeply. Hermione noticed how peaceful he was. And how angelic he looked when his mouth wasn't moving. But a more pressing matter was that she needed to use the loo. Hermione tried to lift his arm but it just flopped back down over her even harder than before. He stirred slightly and she hoped that meant he was about to wake up, instead he unconsciously moved closer to her. His arm pulled her near and he put his chin on top of her hair. He inhaled her scent and mumbled something incoherent in his sleep. She was trapped.

"Malfoy." she whispered. Not wanting to wake him up too quickly. He didn't stir at all.

"Malfoy!" she said a bit louder. Still nothing.

"MALFOY!" she yelled, pushing him off of her as hard as she could. He fell to the floor with a thump.

"Bloody hell, what the fuck are you doing?" he yelled.

"I have to go to the bathroom." she said politely, standing up and smoothing out her wrinkled clothing.

"So you felt you needed to push me off the bed? Why didn't you climb over me? Or better yet, once the storm was over why didn't you go back to your own bunk?"

"I couldn't climb over you…" she said feeling slightly embarrassed.

"Why not?"

"You were, well, there's no delicate way to put this, you had your arm around me. And I couldn't get it off."

His face flushed.

"Well…" he started.  
"It's ok. Let's not talk about it. I appreciate what you did, and no one will ever know about it."

"Uh, thanks." he said watching her walk into the bathroom and shut the door. He hoped that she didn't see, or worse yet _feel_ the erection that was pressing against his pajama bottoms. He groaned loudly as he stood up and sat back down on the bed. He was slightly embarrassed about the dream he had been having when she woke him up.

_Draco awoke in the middle of the night to find Hermione facing him in bed. The storm had passed. She was breathing slowly, steadily. Her head resting on his shoulder. He used his fingertips to graze her exposed skin. Goosebumps erupted on her slumbering frame. He smiled at that. He had always been skilled with women. He traced her arm again, up and down, feeling her tremble at his touch. Feeling a little more daring he leaned in and grazed her forehead with his lips. Hermione moaned softly, cuddling closer to him. His lips traveled south barely touching her own. She opened her mouth, unconsciously, her breath caught in her throat. He could tell that she thought she was dreaming because her body loosened and became more relaxed. _

"_You like that?" he whispered in her ear. The scent of her hair driving him crazy. _

"_Mmmhmm." she mumbled. _

_The pit of his stomach was binding up in knots. His left hand roamed from her arm to her abdomen, pulling up the top of her pajamas up to reveal her flat stomach. His fingertips swept across her naval, making her back arch slightly. He dared his hand to move upward, underneath her shirt. Her bare breasts moved up and down with every breath she took. He reached her nipple, tugging at it softly with his thumb and forefinger. It hardened instantly under his expert touch. He brushed it a little harder before kneading her breast in his fingers. She tensed her muscles, and then released them, moaning softly into the still night air. Seeing her like this was getting Draco more aroused than he had been in years. Granger was not a sexual being in his eyes, not yet anyway. Just knowing that underneath all of that clothing was a woman wanting and needing to get out was driving him crazy. One by one he unbuttoned her pajama top, revealing the glorious creamy skin hidden underneath. His lips moved closer to her chest, carefully tasting her flesh. Tiny kisses along her collar bone and down towards his ultimate goal. Boldly he took a pink nipple into his mouth and twirling his tongue along it. Her body arched again, this time a bit more forceful. His left hand was still caressing her stomach while he suckled her breasts, taking one at a time. He thought she would wake up at any moment and throw him off her, but she kept her eyes shut. As if she was dreaming of him doing this to her as well. His hand traveled from her stomach down to the waistband of her pajamas, stopping just short of entering. He moved his mouth up before he did and kissed her hard and long. She responded, eyes still shut, by opening her mouth and allowing his tongue to explore. Her hands grabbed a fistful of his blond hair. That was his cue; he lifted the waistband and let his hand wander inside. She was so delightfully warm, and he expected nothing less of her than cotton knickers, probably white. His hand grazed her thighs, and they parted of their own free will when he approached them He slipped into her knickers and his fingers felt the wiry hair leading to a wonderful heat that he could already feel on his skin. Just as his fingers touched the wetness that was to be the undoing of Draco Malfoy…_

He woke up. Or more precisely, was woken up. By the object of his dreams.

"Damn." he said aloud. "Damn, damn, damn."

"Swearing so early in the morning?" she asked, emerging from the bathroom.

"Yeah." he said, not meeting her eyes.

"Look…" she started, sitting down next to him on the bottom bunk.

"You don't have to." he said. His voice was low and cracked slightly as he wished his body would hurry up and forget about that dream already.

"I do."

"Please…" he said pulling some blankets over his lap while he tried to think of things that would make it go away. 'Quidditch, broomstick care and maintenance, McGonagall, Pansy.' The last two did it for him. He felt himself go limp and he could finally speak.

"What you did for me last night was…"

"Granger," he groaned. "I just wanted to get some sleep. Don't read too much into it. I mean the two of us are stuck here together, until you resign as head girl that is. We might as well try to get along. And as much as I like taking the mickey out of you, it's just not worth it."

"Wait…you like fighting with me and making me miserable?"

"Yes."

"Why? Are you that cruel of a person?" she asked. Tears were welling in her brown eyes.

"No."

"Then why? Why me? Other than my blood which you have made painfully clear that you find repulsive, what is wrong with me?"

"Nothing."

"What?" she asked in utter disbelief.

"There is nothing wrong with you, in theory." he said trying to get out of the current situation.

"In theory?" she said incredulous to his words. "In theory?"

"Is there an echo in here?" he asked. "You heard me. If not for your bloodline…well it doesn't matter. Nothing can change that."

"It does matter. I want to know why for six years you have tortured me."

Draco rolled his eyes and stood up.

"Tell me." she said forcefully.  
"There is nothing more to tell. Fighting with you is like my morning coffee…I can live without it, but why? I'm going to get some food." and with that he turned and walked out the door.

"Bloody git." she said throwing herself down onto the bunk.

He walked, and then ran to the spot where he could best clear his head. The waterfall he so often swam in. He quickly stripped off his pajama bottoms and dove into the clear, cool water. Icy chills ran up his spine as he swam gracefully back and forth in the deep lagoon. His mind wouldn't shut off.

"Why does she have to be a mud…" he bit his tongue, "muggleborn." He sighed heavily. He was in it and in it deep. He could never let her know that he didn't really feel all those things. That he thought she was kind, and smart and pretty. And he could never tell her that the smell of her hair drove him wild. They were just too different. There were too many hurtful words said, mostly by him. Too many hard feelings. All in all he would just have to shut up and try to live with her the next few days. After all, she was resigning as head girl. And as much as he hated that he would no longer be head boy, he was glad that she was ending it and not him.

Back at the cabin Hermione began the next chapter of her Transformation assignment. A moment later an owl sped through the open doorway and landed on the table. She was laden down with a large box of clothing, books, potion ingredients and to her excitement and shock, their wands. Enclosed was a note from the headmaster.

* * *

_Miss Granger and Mister Malfoy,_

_Being an old man I severely underestimated your will power and determination. I had a visitor tonight, a Miss Weasley. She told me of your enchanted diary. I must admit that I was angry at first, but then delighted at your cleverness. You may keep the diary, but I instructed Miss Weasley not to disclose your location or assignment. And I will know if she does. She did tell me something quite disturbing. That Miss Granger intends to resign her post as head girl. When I first sent you off I told you that if one of you resigned both of you would lose your positions. I have reconsidered that idea. I am making it clear to the both of you that you will NOT resign. You will finish this assignment or be prepared to live there until graduation. Which neither of you will be able to attend if you miss your N.E.W. Ts. I know that years of not getting along will not disappear overnight. But I hope you are trying your best. I have enclosed some more clothing, books, homework, potion ingredients and yes, your wands. You need them to practice your homework and just reading the text (as demonstrated by Professor Umbridge in your fifth year) simply won't work. Please don't try to use them to get off the island, to hex each other, or to try to conjure food. They won't work for any of those purposes. You are both over seventeen so you may use magic for any other purpose but those. You will be surprised that in the harshest of times, people can band together and work out their differences. Please send a reply by owl and let me know if you need anything additional._

_Yours,_

* * *

She was in shock. Ginny had ratted her out. She made a mental note to be mad at her later. She couldn't afford to go without a friend now. She sorted out the books and potion things before finally taking her wand out of the box and polishing it on her pajama bottoms. Gold sparks shot out of the end and she practically glowed. Draco arrived back as she was practicing turning a couch pillow into a quilt and back again. 

"What the…how did you get a wand?" he asked, dripping wet, pajama bottoms sticking to his skin in all the wrong places.

"Dumbledore." she answered handing him the letter, but not looking at him. The wet pajamas were not leaving much to imagination. Not that she hadn't seen it before. It was just something she preferred not to think about.

His eyes scanned the letter and then he grabbed his wand and sat next to her on the couch. She scooted over giving him ample room.

"Neither of us can resign. How's that grabbing you?" he smirked.

"Shut up."

"So what is this about an enchanted diary?" he asked, one eyebrow raised.

"It's nothing. Just something so I could have someone to talk to. And I will be making a note to kill Ginny when I return." she said with a half-smile.

"I'm hurt that you didn't think you could talk to me." he said, hand over his heart.

"Oh please." she sighed.

"So now what?"

"What do you mean?" she asked.  
"We are stuck here."

"Don't remind me."

"We need a plan. I don't want to be here until N.E.W.T.s."

"We've tried everything humanly possible. We are just too different to get along." she added.

"Well you are supposed to be the most brilliant witch at Hogwarts, if you can't think of something; we truly are doomed." he said.

Her face flushed red. Was that a compliment?

"Well, for a start I think that we should try the first name thing again."

"Do you think that makes a difference?" he asked.

"I don't call any of my other friends Potter or Weasley. I call them Harry, Ron and Ginny."

"Okay Hermione." he said with a slight smile.

"So Draco, do you have any ideas?"

"Well, we tried talking. We tried fighting. Obviously that didn't work." he joked. Hermione noticed that when he wasn't smirking he was quite handsome. In that pureblood, noble sort of way. His long facial features and pale blond hair reminded her of a picture of a prince in a child's fairy tale.

"Why don't we try to just be ourselves? Act like we would with our friends at Hogwarts?" she suggested.

"I'm willing to try anything." he said. He scooted closer to her on the couch "What do you do with them?"

"Well we usually study together. Meaning I do all the homework I sometimes let Ron and Harry copy."

"Typical of those two." Draco smirked.

"What about you?"

"Well, to tell you the truth I don't really do much with any one at all. I study alone…"

"But your old bunkmates. Didn't you make friends with them?" Hermione asked.  
"No, I have had a private room since I arrived, at father's insisting of course."

"Oh."  
"Crabbe and Goyle are dunderheads. They stay around because they are too stupid to find any other friends. And our fathers were friends before we were born. No, I shouldn't say friends, acquaintances."

"You mean Death Eaters." she corrected.

"Yes, yes, anyway I suppose the only real friend I have is Blaise."

"Zabini?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Well then I have some bad news. Ginny thinks he is screwing Pansy while you are away."

He shrugged his shoulders.

"I told you. I don't care about her. She is free to shag whomever she pleases."

"Oh, alright." Hermione said. "So what do you do with Zabini?"

"Mainly get drunk."

"At school?"

"Yes."

"How do you get it in?"

"He knows a spell to turn any liquid into Firewhiskey."

Hermione turned her nose up. She had been most unfortunate to taste some a while back and it had burned her mouth and throat so badly that she thought she would never recover.

"Any reason you drink so much?"

"Just a way to pass the time I guess."

"That's depressing." she said.

"What else do you do with your friends?"

"We go out by the lake, have picnics. Sometimes I watch Harry and Ron practice Quidditch. Ginny and I have talks. I've learned to play wizard's chess, but I'm not great."

He didn't know what to say. She was by far more liked and having more fun than he had experienced in his years at Hogwarts. And for the first time in a long while, he felt a new emotion creeping inside of him. Jealousy.

* * *


	9. How to brew a potion

A/N Long chapter! Yay! And finally some real action. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

* * *

How to brew a potion

Jealous. He, Draco Malfoy, was jealous of her. Jealous of her friends, jealous of her family. And it was eating at his insides.

"What's wrong?" she asked him. He had become noticeably silent in the last moment or so.

"Nothing." he lied.

"You look like something is bothering you." she said, her brown eyes fixed upon him.

"I guess I just never knew."

"You never knew what?"

"That your life isn't quite the misery I thought it was." he replied. His silver eyes shifted uncomfortably.

"Why would you think my life was miserable?" she said surprised.

"Well, you're a mud…" he bit his tongue. "Muggleborn. My father always told me that no one wanted to be friends with them, and that they were poor and not as intelligent as purebloods."

"I see." she said defensively.

"But I always knew, since our first year that you were the smartest witch to enter Hogwarts in quite a while."

Hermione looked down and blushed.

"And I know that you have loads of friends. And two very good friends who would do anything for you. I don't know if you are poor or not…"

"Not that it matters, but my parents are dentists. They make plenty of money."

"Well, the point is…I was wrong."

Hermione looked at him as if he had a bird on his head. She had never heard him admit that he was wrong about anything.

"Being wrong isn't the end of the world. At least you realize it now. You're still young enough to change." she smiled slightly.

"Yeah."

A very long moment of uncomfortable silence followed. They both avoided looking at each other. Hermione broke the silence with what she was best at…homework.

"Why don't we get started on this potion?" she asked him.

"This one?" he groaned.  
"This is the one that is due. We only have a few days to perfect it. You know how Professor Snape is."

"I guess you are right." he sighed.

"I usually am." she smiled.

"So let's get started. An elixir to induce euphoria." he said reading the textbook. "I've brewed this before. Professor Snape gave me private lessons."

"So where do we start?"

"Get the ingredients out of the box and I'll start the cauldron over the fireplace." he told her.

"There are a lot of ingredients, how long does it take to brew?"

"A few hours to brew, then you have to let it cool for a few hours."

"Professor Snape says we have to test it before we send in our sample." she read the instruction sheet included with the potion supplies.

"Great." he said sarcastically.

"Ok, here are the things we need." she said handing him the jars

A few hours later the potion was done. The sunshine yellow liquid sat on the table, cooling in the light breeze that blew through the cabin. They both felt a sense of deep accomplishment as they took a seat on the sofa.

"Where did you get the idea to add peppermint?" she asked curiously.

"It was something Snape taught me. It helps with some of the more unfortunate side effects."

"Side effects?" she asked, somewhat alarmed. She remembered all too well the side effects of Polyjuice potion when it was accidentally mixed with animal hair instead of human.

"Well, sometimes you have excessive singing and nose-tweaking. But the peppermint is just a precaution against it."

"Oh, well if that's all." she smiled uncertainly. She was astounded at his potion brilliance. They sat there, watching the swirling steam rise from the cauldron, wondering when it would be cool enough to bottle. "You really are quite good at potions." she said out of the blue.

"Thanks." he replied. "You are not bad yourself."

"Thanks."

Another few minutes of silence followed.

"It's going to take hours for it to cool." he told her. "Maybe we can work on some transfiguration. We are way behind since we didn't have our wands."

"Alright." she said taking out her book and reading over the chapters that they were supposed to be working on. "It says we should work on making objects disappear."

"Oh…" he groaned again.

"What?"

"That is the hardest for me."

"It's no picnic for me either. Making things disappear and reappear will be on our N.E.W.T.s. And I'm pretty good at it, as hard as it might be."

"Alright." he sighed, picking up his wand and reading over her shoulder. The scent of her shampoo drifted up his nostrils. She could feel his breath tickling her neck, every few seconds strands of her hair would brush across her face from his heavy breathing.

They worked the entire afternoon on making the couch cushions disappear and reappear. By the time the potion had cooled enough to put into a tiny flask, both of them had been able to make the flowery cushion disappear into thin air and reappear with no trouble. Hermione walked over to the yellow potion and scooped a proper amount into a flask, sealing it with wax.

"Done!" she smiled brightly. She never felt better than when all her homework was finished.

"Want to start on ancient runes or let that go until tomorrow?" he asked, standing up to stretch.

"Tomorrow. That isn't due until later next week. I think we did well. We went practically the entire day without a fight. I think that is cause for a celebration."

"One day is cause for celebration?" he laughed. "Well, considering that it is us, you might be right."

Hermione took her wand and shot streamers from it, draping them across the rafters and the bunk beds. Draco chuckled a bit.

"Oh, we still have to test that potion." she said frowning at the remaining yellow liquid.

"You try some and let me know how it goes." he laughed. He had tried it after brewing it the first time. It was an odd sensation.

"We both have to." she insisted, pouring a couple of ounces into each glass.

He walked reluctantly over and took the glass from her hand.

"You've tried it right?" she asked just before taking a drink.

"Yes."

"It's alright then?"

"I suppose it depends on what you consider 'alright'." he replied.

"Well, it won't make us sleepy or stupid or anything like that right?"

"No, none of those. It just makes you…happy." he said after a bit of thought.

"Happy? Ok, I can deal with happy." she said. "Cheers!"

He clinked her glass with his and drank the thick liquid in one gulp. The sensation it caused running down her throat was something she didn't expect. It was minty, probably from the added peppermint she reminded her self. But it also tingled and warmed her from the inside out. She noticed that he was pretending to sip his, but wasn't really ingesting any.

"Both of us…" she reminded, taking her finger and tipping the glass backwards so that he had to either drink it, or choke on it. He chose to drink it. He let the sensation run down his throat, hating the way it felt and hating the way it was going to make him feel.

"It's not that bad." Hermione said as the warmth spread through her body.

"It's not that great either." he said as it spread through his body too.

Then, the full effect of the potion hit her. She felt happy. As happy as she could ever remember feeling. Her body felt light, like she could float away. And then she started to laugh.

"Merlin." he said before he felt the same light, airy sensation. He tried to control the laughter, but nothing helped. He was happy. The smell of Hermione's hair drifted into his nose again and he realized, rather gleefully that she was laughing so hard that her hand was on his shoulder and her head was on his chest. He began to laugh as well, something that she had honestly never heard. A true laugh from him. Not a smirk or a chuckle, but real, light-hearted, honest laughter. And that one act of honesty from him made her feel even happier.

"I…told you…this potion…was trouble." he said, gasping for air in between bouts of loud, boisterous laughter.

"And…I didn't…listen." she replied. "How long does this last?" she managed to get out.

"About…an hour." he replied.

"Oh…bloody…hell." she gasped. Her side ached from laughing. The laughter was subsiding and she realized that while she felt the light sensation coursing through her blood, that she was able to control the laughter. She also realized that she was touching Draco and he wasn't pushing her away. She picked her head off of his chest and pulled back slightly.

"So now what?'

"I don't know. The last time I took this I was trapped in a damp potions room with Professor Snape. Not in a cabin, in the middle of paradise with you."

Hermione didn't know if that was an insult or a compliment, but she took it as the latter seeing as they both took the potion.

"Why don't we take a walk?" he suggested. We can survey the storm damage and collect some food. Maybe some fish?" he smiled genuinely. And hated himself for it. This stupid potion took control of your emotions, making you ridiculously happy.

"Alright." she said taking hold of his hand and heading for the door. His hand was sweating inside of hers. The storm had left the air outside humid as the sun heated up the super-moist air. They walked down the hill and towards the waterfall lagoon. Hermione giggled every few moments against her will. And her giggles led to Draco smiling again. Maybe this potion wasn't as bad as he thought.

They reached the waterfall and Hermione had a wonderful idea in her head. She was always one to think first, and then act. But with the potion muddling her thoughts it seemed as if her actions were out of her control. Without thinking, she was stripping off her outer clothing and diving into the water. Draco watched in amused horror. He was torn. Her beautiful form was swimming gracefully through the water and he ached to join her.

"Come on." she called.

He was fighting the urge to do just that. He could feel the potion urging him on, but the feeling to resist was there as well. He guessed that it affected people in different ways.

"What about the food?' he asked, noticing that he was unconsciously taking off his shoes.

"We'll worry about that later." she said grinning at him. Her perfect white, even teeth showing through her smile. And before he knew it he was stripping off his pajama bottoms for the second time that day. He didn't have anything on underneath, and she didn't seem to notice or mind. He dove in near her and swam deftly through the clear, cool water. He started to feel more and more out of control. She was swimming near to him and he swallowed hard when he realized that she was wearing only a white bra and panties. Both of which had become fairly transparent in the water. He could see the outline of her rosy nipples through the thin fabric. Her usually wild hair was wet and sleek. Water was running down her temples and cheeks, down her chin and dripping onto the cleavage of her breasts. She was bloody fabulous and didn't even know it. A squirt of water from her mouth woke him from the trance he seemed to be in.

"Hey…" he said. She smiled broadly at him.

"Hey what?" she replied. And then she was touching him again. Her arms wrapped around his neck in a spot where he could touch the bottom of the lagoon and she could not. Her face was so close to him that he could see the faint freckles on her nose and cheeks. Her eyes seemed to be a million shades of brown. His breath caught in his throat again.

"Is something wrong?" she asked, giggling.

"No." he smiled, lying all the while.

Then they both started to laugh again. He wrapped his arms around her small waist, placing one hand on the small of her back. They spun around in the water, every sensation heightened by the potion. The laughter between the both of them seemed to help them both ignore the fact that their bodies were pressed together, and that her fingers were playing with loose strands of his hair. Drips of water were running down his nose, and she suddenly found him extremely endearing. She laughed again, for no reason. And he pulled her up to his face, to his smiling mouth. Their lips found each other between the giggles. Just a few light hearted kisses at first. Then it became more intense. It was as if they had just become each others favorite obsession.

"Mmmm…" she moaned into his mouth. Sending shivers down his spine. He captured her lips again, this time the gasp died in his throat as her tongue explored his own. He felt like he would die right there. His mind was racing between the rational and the irrational. The rational mind told him to stop. But the irrational, potion induced mind (the one that was currently winning) told him to never, ever stop.

"Touch me…" she whimpered, her voice was soft and seductive. He wanted to touch her more than anything else in the world. It was as if nothing else mattered.

He touched his forehead with hers while he caught his breath.  
"I…I can't." he managed to get out.

"Why?" she asked, a note of hurt in her voice.

"It's just the potion. This is all because of it." he said in a low, husky voice.

"I know." she replied.

"You don't really want to do this then…" he started.

"I do. Let's just see where it takes us." she said as irrational as she had ever felt. She reached up with her mouth and kissed him again. She grabbed his hand and placed it over her right breast. His body tensed up as the nipple of her right breast hardened under the wet cotton fabric. He felt a stir in his lower region. She kissed him harder. Feeling a high she doubted she would ever feel again. She wondered why witches and wizards didn't get addicted to this stuff. The smell of him was clean and raw. He seemed a million miles away from the hateful boy he was at school. His hand massaged her breast gently at first, as if he was wary of her reaction. Then when he was a bit surer of himself he grabbed more forcefully. He caught her groan with his mouth again, swallowing it whole. His left hand roamed from the small of her back to the front of her panties. She gasped when his fingertips touched the thin cotton of her panties. Her head was soaring with happiness and longings. She felt like a woman for the first time in a long time. She felt wanted and appreciated. His fingertips were looming at the waistband of her knickers. His thumb making tiny circles on her lower stomach. She gave no sign that she wanted him to stop. The cool water was making her body shiver.

"I want you…" he whispered. His heart was nearly beating out of his chest. He could barely hear himself speak. Let alone try to hear what her response would be.

"Merlin, I want you too." she replied.

She trailed her fingertips down his back and grasped his arse firmly. He jumped at her touch. His fingers dared inside of her wet panties…causing her to jump a bit. Even though the water was cold she was blissfully hot down there. He sought out the warmest spot and made tiny circles with his thumb and forefinger. Electricity coursed through her body. Every little twitch he made caused spasms in her body that she didn't understand. She felt soft skin graze her thigh. It felt like it was throbbing against her, causing what little sense she had to fly out the window. He picked up her lithe body and carried her towards the shoreline. The soft white sand made a comfortable place to lie her down and complete all the things he was thinking inside of his head. The warm sun felt good on their bodies as the heat from the sand warmed them up instantly. His hand was still making steady movement inside of her knickers. Finding her clit once outside of the water was too easy. And she let him know he was in the right spot by her sharp intake of breath. Her fingers raked his back leaving tiny red marks along the way. He felt as if he couldn't breath. She was consuming him.

She felt like she couldn't breathe either. Was it only an hour ago that they were working on homework? Still not friends and certainly not lovers. How long ago did they take that potion? Her head was swimming with every thought she had ever had for as long as she could remember. Her body felt like it was on fire, and a knot of that flame was currently residing in the pit of her stomach. She felt like she _needed_ something. Something that had to be released. And yet she had no idea how to make the feeling go away. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling, but it was something she would rather not feel in anyone else's company just yet.

"Hermione…" he moaned, kissing her neck and collar bone. His hand still working inside of her panties. Just as she thought the feeling would be let go, he would back off.

"I…need…" she managed to say.

"What do you need?" he whispered. His breath tickling the tiny hairs on her neck.

"I don't know…something." she said in a voice that was barely audible.

"This?" he asked, rubbing her clit more intensely. She felt that fire again, burning her stomach. Burning her insides until she was sure that in a moment she would be nothing more than a pile of ashes. This time he didn't stop. The feeling kept building, becoming more and more intense. It filled her up and the only thing she could do was scream out.

He smiled at her as she came, probably for the first time in her life, he thought.

"I…I, uh…bloody hell." she said resting her head on the sand. She was still smiling at him and he began to tug off her knickers.

Hermione felt like her senses were returning to her. She blinked several times and took a deep breath. It still felt like her head was in a fog, but the potion was fading fast. It was then she noticed Draco's hand rubbing between her legs, and his mouth kissing her thighs. She knew she had let things get out of hand but she didn't realize how far it had gone.

"Uh, Draco?" she said. Her face was red from the intensity of her orgasm and her subsequent embarrassment at her half-naked state.

"Mmmhmm…" he replied, his mouth making itself unavailable for talking.

"We need to stop."


	10. How to say you're sorry

A/N Sorry for the late update, but things are going on that I can't control, lol. I hope to have an update for 'Beautiful' this week so keep your fingers crossed. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

* * *

How to say you're sorry

Suddenly Draco felt very aware of his current situation. He knew the potion's effects were coming to an end as he felt the confusion and euphoria leaving his body.

"What did you say?" he asked. Although he knew perfectly well what she had said.

"We need to stop. This has gone way too far. I didn't realize how, uninhibited that potion made you feel." she said, stuttering slightly and biting her lower lip.

His eyes, that were so warm just moments ago, so full of fire and passion, grew cold and distant as he sat up and reached for his discarded pajama bottoms. He pulled them on and stood up.

"You are a fucking tease." he said coldly.

"Look Draco…" she started as she made a mad reach for her clothing as well.

"Just shut the fuck up!" he shouted. "I don't know why I bother even trying to get along with you."

"WHY?" she yelled. "Because I won't shag you?"

"Hell no Granger!" he returned with such venom she was taken aback. "Because I knew that taking that potion was a bad idea. And when you were coming on to me in the water…"

Hermione huffed.

"Well you bloody well did!" He yelled. "I told you it was a bad idea, that it was just the potion. You said you didn't care. And now…"

"What?" she said, knowing full well that he was right at least about part of it.

"And now nothing. Just keep away from me." he said with such coldness Hermione shivered. And she was sure it had nothing to do with the water.

Draco stormed back to the cabin and stripped off his wet clothing before heading for the bathroom. He used his wand to heat the bath water (much easier than boiling fifty urns of water) and climbed into the tub. He was so furious that if he didn't manage to control his temper he just may murder her.

'How dare she!' he thought as he sat there soaking. 'She let me get that far and then stops just like that!'

She sat by the shoreline of the lagoon for a long while. Even after she put her clothing back on, her skin was covered in goose bumps. How could today have gone into the loo so quickly? They were getting along. They finished their homework without bickering even once. Then she just had to insist they take the potion. He told her he had taken it before, so he needn't have done so again. But no, she knew everything and had to be right all the bloody time. And the worst part was she _had_ come on to him. And she _wanted _him to go further. And he knew it. How was she ever going to look at him again? She wiped her eyes and stood up to go back to the cabin. She dreaded what she would find there. But when she reached the doorway Malfoy was nowhere to be seen.

"Mal…Draco?" she asked circumspectly.

No answer.

She went over to sit at the table and look over some ancient runes scrolls that she had left earlier after taking the potion. She heard someone, presumably Draco, splashing around in the bathtub. She closed her eyes and tried to drown out the images of her stroking him in the water, and his fingers reaching into places she hadn't dreamed of letting anyone, let alone him, touch her. She tried to shake those images but they wouldn't let her head go. A few minutes later she heard the bathroom door open and watched him stroll out, wearing only his boxers and a white tank top. He didn't even look at her as he tossed his clothing into a pile that had been building for a while.

"Scourgify." he said lazily, pointing his wand at the mess. His clothing washed, dried and folded itself

"Let me explain please…" Hermione asked. Draco turned to look at her with cold eyes. He didn't say a word, but he turned from her and climbed into the bottom bunk.

"Will you just grow up and talk to me?" she shouted.

He stared at the top bunk, unmoving.

"You are so immature!" she said getting back to her books and huffing as she sat down.

"I'm immature?" he finally said aloud. "I am immature? You are the one who started something you had no intention of finishing. You are the one who behaves like a 12 year old girl. YOU! So don't you dare call me immature! I've had it with this whole situation! I just want to forget today ever happened."

"But it did. And I don't want to forget it." she said quietly.

"As far as I'm concerned it didn't." he said callously. "Now just leave me alone."

He turned over in his bunk and faced the wall. Hermione felt tears welling in her eyes. Something about the way he said those words hurt her more than she had felt in a long while. Even more than when Ron didn't ask her to the Yule ball. This had been her first 'real' sexual experience. Something she would remember for the rest of her life. And now those memories would forever be ruined by these tears. She climbed onto the top bunk and opened the diary. She needed Ginny now more than ever.

* * *

_Ginny,_

_Things here are more miserable than ever. Certain things happened, I mean I let them happen, well really I made them happen and now we are not speaking to each other again. Thanks to you, (remind me to be mad at you later.) I can't resign. We have to stay here until we can get along. And right now that seems a lifetime away. And if we can't get along we won't graduate. I don't know what to do! Please write back as soon as you can. I feel so lonely._

_Love,_

_Hermione_

* * *

Several days passed by with Draco completely ignoring Hermione's presence. He worked on his homework alone and gathered food alone as well. He would respond in one word phrases only when completely necessary. Ginny wrote back a few days later.

* * *

_Hermione,_

_Your letter made no sense. What happened? What did you make happen? Did you try a spell that backfired? I'm going crazy wondering what you did. And I know that you are a little mad about me going to Dumbledore, but it was for your own good. You'll thank me later. Write back quickly and tell me the details._

_Ginny_

* * *

When the diary glowed purple Hermione read over Ginny's words. She was so embarrassed to tell anyone what had happened.

* * *

_Ginny,_

_I don't know how to tell you this. Ill give you the short version. Malfoy and I had to brew a potion, an elixir to induce euphoria. It was a difficult potion and Snape made us try it before sending it in. Malfoy had tried it before and warned me against it. But since I know everything (note the sarcasm) I insisted. Soon after taking it I felt like every inhibition, every common sense thing in my head was gone. We went swimming, well in the lagoon…I wore only my knickers and bra and he was in the buff. (Shut up Ginny) Well we started kissing and laughing and pretty soon it was getting too much for me. I told him to stop and he got mad and is not talking to me. You need to swear on all you hold dear that you will wipe this page and never speak of this to anyone, anytime, ever!_

_Write back and help!  
Hermione_

* * *

She read over the letter a few times and then closed the diary to send it off. Just then Draco walked back into the cabin, dripping wet from swimming alone again. Hermione opened her mouth to say something but nothing came out. And even if it had, he wouldn't have listened. His mind was set.

Again it took a few days for Ginny to respond. Hermione was going out of her mind with loneliness and boredom. When the diary glowed purple she nearly jumped up out of her skin to go read it.

* * *

_Hermione,_

_I can't believe what I'm hearing from you! You and Malfoy? Kissing? I nearly fell over. What you have to understand about boys is that telling him to stop (no matter how good of an idea it was) is an ego killer to them. And I'm assuming since Malfoy always thought that you weren't good enough for him it hit him doubly hard. I mean Draco freaking Malfoy getting rejected by you? No offense or anything, I can just see how that would make him mad. There's only one thing you can do in this situation. Especially if you want to get off that island and back to Hogwarts anytime soon. Apologize and explain why you did what you did. You have to be the bigger person, because believe me when it comes to men's egos, they will never take that higher road. Write back soon and let me know what happens._

_Ginny_

* * *

Hermione bit her lip nervously. She just didn't know if she could look him in the eye and admit that everything that happened, aside from the snogging, was her first time. And that it scared her. And it had nothing to do with him. She sighed heavily. She would just have to do it. As soon as he got back from wherever he went, she would apologize to him and ask to start over for the millionth time.

A few hours later Draco returned, still not looking at her. Still ignoring her presence. Hermione jumped off of the top bunk and sat down next to him on the sofa. He scooted down as far away from her as he could get until he ran out of room. Then he just turned his head and stared out the window.

"Will you just stop?" she asked. "I have something to say and it's not easy."

He didn't turn to look at her.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I insisted you take the potion, I'm sorry I gave you the wrong impression of me down at the lagoon. That was the first time I…well…" she blushed. "When you told me it was a bad idea I should have listened."

"Caught on have you?" he said quietly. Still not looking at her.

"That's all I wanted to say. Now we can continue to walk around here like we are alone, or we can start over, yet again, and try to get back to Hogwarts." she told him.

He turned towards her, his eyes still cold grey.

"Why? Why try again?" he asked in a low voice. "We have no chance to get along."

"I think we do." she half smiled.

"I don't know…" he said reluctantly.

"We can't possibly screw up worse than we already have."

"True." he half smiled back.

"So am I forgiven?"

"We'll see." he smirked.

But getting along was proving more and more difficult. They could manage for a few hours but would end up bickering about one thing or another in the end. And both of them still had unresolved feelings about what had happened between them in a potion induced state. Hermione was embarrassed beyond belief. She never intended letting him see her undone like that. And he felt resentful that he had tended to her needs and he still had needs of his own. But they agreed not to speak of it again. They agreed that it was the potion that made them lose their heads briefly. About a week and a half after the potion incident the school owl arrived bringing them fresh clothing, potion ingredients, homework assignments and the grades for their previous homework.

Hermione scanned the grades and grinned from ear to ear.

"I take it we did well?" Draco asked looking over her shoulder at the paper.

"Very well. All 'O's'. And professor Snape included a note." she said handing the note to Draco. Tiny cramped writing that was instantly recognizable as Snape's scrawled over the page.

* * *

_Mr. Malfoy and Miss Granger,_

_I was pleased and somewhat shocked at the wonderful example of Euphoria that you provided for me. It was nearly perfect. I have no idea what plans Dumbledore has for you but it seems to be improving your potion making skills Miss Granger. No doubt Mr. Malfoy had a hand in that as well but whatever the reason I hope the next potion lives up to these new higher standards._

_Professor Severus Snape_

* * *

"What's the next potion?" He asked looking through the papers and ingredients.

"It's a wound healing potion." she said showing him the page in the textbook that corresponds.

"I've never tried that one." he said glumly. His reputation for potions was going to be tested.

"Here are the ingredients; three thinly sliced roots of Asphodel, ten shredded daisy roots, a pinch of Fluxweed, two thimbles of Hellebore, one unicorn tail hair and two squished Shrivelfigs." Hermione said.

Draco prepared all the ingredients on the small table as Hermione put their small cauldron over the brightly burning fire. By the time the cauldron was red hot Draco had managed to slice the roots of Asphodel as precisely as she had ever seen.

"Nice." she smiled, still avoiding any direct eye contact with him. He half-smiled back and continued to slice.

"It says to add these first. But it also said you need three liters of water in the cauldron when it is red hot, so you had better get it in." he said motioning toward the glowing cauldron. Hermione went to the tub spout and put three liters of water into their urn and carried it carefully into the room where they were working. The cauldron steamed and hissed as she poured the water in.

"Should I add these now?" she asked.

"Yes, then stir five times clockwise, then five counterclockwise. Repeat that every ten minutes for an hour." he told her.

They both sat on the sofa, watching the cauldron bubble and steam. Every ten minutes one of them would stir the potion as directed, but in between the stirring the room was uncomfortably quiet. It seemed to be the longest hour ever. When it was over Hermione broke the silence.

"Now what?"

"Add the daisy roots and one of the thimbles of Hellebore." he directed her. She did and the potion turned a violent shade of red. It fizzed and hissed at her. "You have to let it simmer again for another five minutes."

Again, the five minutes seemed to take forever in the silence of the room.

"Now the pinch of Fluxweed and the squished Shrivelfigs. Then the last thimble of Hellebore."

She added the required ingredients and watched the slow simmer turn to a rolling boil. The color changed from red to orange.

"Now take the cauldron off the fire," Draco read aloud. "And when it is room temperature we add the unicorn hair." he said satisfied.

They waited for it to cool and added the hair. The potion turned instantly purple. Hermione and Draco had satisfied looks on their faces.

"Done!" Hermione exclaimed. She couldn't contain the grin on her face. And to her surprise Draco smiled back.

* * *


	11. How to spend the Holidays

**A/N Sorry for the delay in updating but I was working on 'Beautiful' so you will have to forgive me! ;) I hope you like the update. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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How to spend the Holidays 

The weeks passed with the couple being no closer to returning to Hogwarts, or so they thought. Not having a calendar made it hard to decipher what day or even what month it was. The weather never gave any indication and despite the fact that Hermione tried to keep track the monotony of living together took its toll. They had no idea that the winter holidays were set to start at Hogwarts in just a few days time. Dumbledore however knew exactly how long the couple had been there. He was in his office going over papers when Professor McGonagall stepped in.

"Albus?" she asked carefully.

"Yes, Minerva…what can I do for you?" he asked, blue eyes sparkling at his long time friend.

"What should I tell the Grangers and Mrs. Malfoy about their children's return for the holidays?" she said nervously. She had a feeling she already knew the answer and none of the parents would like it.

"Well, I think you should tell them that their children will be spending the holidays working on their cooperation skills." he said putting his fingertips together and smiling in an amused way.

"Albus!" McGonagall said in a shocked way. "You can't keep them there forever! Some people just weren't meant to get along. Would you place Harry Potter on an island with Voldemort and make them stay until they are best friends? No, because it's ludicrous. I've heard that Miss Granger wants to resign as head girl. Why not let her? End this madness and get those two back to school. Take away house points or something, but don't let them stay there for Christmas!" she said most forcefully.

"I can Minerva. You have never questioned my decisions before this, why now?" he said turning towards her.

"You know the history between those two. And I questioned you when you made them head boy and girl as well. The whole idea of inter-house unity is never going to happen Albus."

"Perhaps it is a foolish old man's dream, but never the less they won't be back here in time for Christmas. Although it's within their power to do so."

"It is?" she asked quietly.

"Oh yes, for a few weeks now they have had the power to touch the urn and return to Hogwarts. Why they have not Minerva, I cannot say."

Professor McGonagall put her hand over her mouth to hide her surprise.

"You are not going to tell them?"

"No."

"Why on earth not?"

"Part of getting along is working together on problems. Besides I'm going to visit them. I will leave anvil-sized hints if that is your wish." he smiled.

McGonagall huffed and walked out the door.

Hermione was lying on the couch reading her runes textbook. Draco was out by the lagoon she assumed. She thought she heard a distant pop but convinced herself that it was all in her mind. She turned the page after reading the same paragraph for the tenth time. A shadow appeared in the doorway and it caught her by surprise.

"Miss Granger." Dumbledore smiled.

"P…professor?" she gasped sitting up and smoothing out her wrinkled clothing.

"How are you?" he asked taking a seat beside her.

"Uh, good I suppose. What are you doing here?"

"Aren't you going to ask me if I have come to take you back to Hogwarts?" he said smiling graciously.

"Are you?" she asked, knowing the answer.  
"No, I'm afraid not."

"Oh, then what are you doing here?" she asked him.

"Well it's almost the Christmas holidays…" he started.

"What?" Hermione said jumping up from her seat. "We've been here almost two bloody months?"

"Miss Granger, calm down…" he said kindly. But just then Draco walked in, dripping wet holding a towel around his midsection. "Ahh, Mr. Malfoy. Enjoying the accommodations?"

Draco stood there shocked.

"Headmaster…what are you doing here? Are we allowed to go back to school now?"

"Oh, as I was just explaining to Miss Granger here, that is not possible just yet. I came to let you know that Christmas is in just over a week."

He paused and took in Draco's shocked expression.  
"A week?" Draco asked disbelieving.

"Yes, and since you have not figured out how to get home yet you will be spending it here together."

"Together?" they said in unison. Both of their jaws dropped.

"Yes, together. I am giving you both copies of some mail order catalogs to send presents to your family and friends. And…each other." he said dramatically. He pulled the catalogs out of his robes and placed them on the table. "Finding out about the others interests will help you get back to school. And hopefully help you to work together in a more efficient way. I will send you the gifts that you receive."

Both Draco and Hermione groaned.

"But, fear not. I am not going to leave you to eat bananas and fruit as your feast for the holidays. I have brought quite a bit of food, uncooked of course that you can use in the next few weeks, provided that you can't figure out the key to getting home. He pointed his wand at a free space on the wall and a small refrigerator like appliance appeared. "This will help preserve it for a while. Now what else have I forgotten?" he asked thinking. "Oh yes, outside the door is a trunk of clothing and special occasion items. Christmas crackers and the such. We can't have you celebrating with out them can we?" he smiled at them in a most kind way. But they both stared back with bitter looks on their faces.

"Don't be so glum. I find spending the holidays with people different from myself to be quite an enjoyable experience." he said standing up and heading for the door. "Maybe if you use your heads you will be back at Hogwarts before I can say urn." he smiled before disappearing into thin air.

"Well this is just bloody great." Draco huffed, not bothering to cover up the places the towel missed.

"It's not like I'm happy about it either." she said thinking fondly of Christmas at Hogwarts and wishing that she could be there with Ron and Harry on Christmas morning. Right now she hated Draco for being stuck there and wondered how she could manage to have a good holiday with him.

Much to their surprise the small icebox was deceptively large on the inside. Dumbledore had filled it with Christmas cakes and puddings, several fat geese, a turkey, potatoes, fudge, a crown roast of pork, a bottle of mead, milk and a fruitcake. Inside the trunk Dumbledore left at the door were several more changes of clothing, including some formal wear neither of them had seen before. There were the Christmas crackers Dumbledore had promised, a set of fine china they assumed was for their holiday feast, a tea set and several boxes of tea, bottles of shampoo, conditioner, razors and two small bottles, one red labeled Hermione and one blue labeled Draco. At the very bottom were more mail order catalogs and several recent copies of the Daily prophet. Even though this was more than they had had to eat in several weeks neither of them could smile about it. The thumbed through the catalogs and she picked out a Chudley Cannons Quidditch set for Ron. It contained an entire Quidditch field and players in miniature. The tiny players zoomed around on their brooms and you could purchase additional teams to play against them. For Harry she had picked out some cologne, but she was wary of this since she couldn't smell it in person. It boasted about a spicy scent that no one could resist. She sent her parents a few wizarding gadgets and some candy that they loved. All she had left to shop for was Draco. And she had no idea what she could get him that he didn't already have. Draco was looking through the pages of a Quidditch catalog looking thoroughly bored.

"Pick something so I can order it already." he said tossing several books in her direction. He had a look of contempt on his face. As if buying a gift for her was so repulsive.

"No, you are supposed to pick it out." she said shoving the books back at him.

"I don't know what the bloody hell you want." he sneered. They had been getting along quite well until that old fool Dumbledore forced them to spend Christmas together and buy each other gifts.

"Well I don't know what you want either but you don't see me shoving books at you and asking you to pick something out." she spat back.

"Why not? It would be so much easier. Dumbledore doesn't have to know." he sighed. This whole situation was tiring to him.

"He will know. He knows everything." she blushed thinking of what happened at the lagoon. "Well hopefully not everything." She said, eyes avoiding his. He didn't acknowledge her comment, preferring not to think of that encounter. It tended to get his blood boiling. And he was already frustrated in that particular department.

She looked over at him.

"So what would interest you?" she asked, trying to pry information out of him.

"Nothing you could find in these books." he said, voice drawling. "What I would fancy right now is a good long shag with a beautiful pureblooded witch."

"Pig." Hermione replied ignoring his comment. There were times when she thought he was just goading her into a fight. And she reminded herself that he probably was.

"I'm taking a bath." He said walking towards the small bath and not caring that his towel had dropped off. He looked backwards over his shoulder to see if he could catch her glancing at his arse. But she never lifted her head from the catalogs. Feeling somewhat let down for whatever reason he entered the bathroom and shut the door behind him. He filled the tub quickly and heated the water with his wand.

Out in the living room Hermione was trying to compose herself. Every so often she would catch a glimpse of his body and have very bad thoughts. And this was no exception. If it was anyone but Malfoy, anyone at all she didn't think she could have controlled her new found urges. But she had become quite skilled at hiding it from him. She took a deep breath and opened the ad section of the Daily prophet. Nothing caught her eye that would interest him. They certainly didn't carry pureblooded witches for him to shag, and even if they did, she thought laughing, how would they ship her? She laughed aloud. She scanned the ads again, still not finding anything that would reveal to Dumbledore that she understood what he really wanted. Just then it occurred to her what he might like. She took out some parchment and wrote a note to Dumbledore. It would take some planning and Dumbledore to agree but if he did she thought it could be perfect. Now all she had to do was wait for the owl to return the next morning and send it off with him.

The week passed too quickly for their taste. Before they knew it Christmas Eve was upon them. Hermione spent the day preparing the turkey Dumbledore had left with all the trimmings. She had never cooked a meal this elaborate before, so she took some help from her wand. Draco, or course, had not lifted a finger all day. He lounged on the sofa rifling through some old Daily prophets.

"Are you going to help at all?" Hermione asked, frustrated beyond words.

"No." was his only reply. "Why are you making so much food anyway? It's just the two of us as always." she could hear the note of contempt in his voice.

"Haven't you ever heard of leftovers?" she said checking on the potatoes she had boiling on the stove.

"No." he replied honestly. Hermione rolled her eyes at him before continuing to cook. By the time six o'clock rolled around dinner was under control so Hermione went to take a bath. She hung her new deep chocolate colored robes on the door. They had a slight gold shimmer to them. Water filled the tub and she poured in some of the cinnamon scented bubbles as she heated the water with a quick spell. She slipped into the hot water and sunk down to her chin. She was so nervous about the gift she had picked out for him. It had taken a lot of thought and work on her part, permission from the headmaster, and quite a bit of manipulation of Draco. But hopefully it would be worth it. Her fingers and toes were wrinkled before she left the tub. She got dressed quickly and let her wet hair air dry into soft, glossy curls. She applied some light make up and then came across the small red bottle that Dumbledore had put in the box. She pulled off the wax seal and pulled the cork out. She sniffed it cautiously.

"Mmmm…" she said dabbing some onto her wrists. But apparently she was taking too long because before long she heard a familiar banging on the door.

"Are you going to be in there forever?"

"Yes!" she yelled back putting a silver barrette into her hair. She opened the door suddenly to find him standing there tapping his foot impatiently.

"About bloody time." he said. But as he looked her over he had nothing else to say. She brushed past him and went back into the kitchen hoping her surprise would wait. Draco entered the bathroom and shut the door behind him. He had taken a bath earlier and just intended to change his clothing and comb his hair. He didn't know why he was bothering really. It was just a stupid Christmas Eve dinner. With Granger no less. He looked at the white shirt and black pants that he had picked out and sighed. Christmas just wouldn't be the same here. He put them on quickly and noticed the tiny blue bottle sitting on the side of the sink. He opened it and noticed a strong spicy smell wafting from the opening.

"Nice…must be expensive." he said putting some on. He wet his hands and ran them through his hair. By the time he left the bathroom a wonderful aroma had filled the small cabin. Turkey, mashed potatoes, dressing and several puddings were placed on the counter. He had to admit that everything looked wonderful. Especially after a steady diet of berries, nuts and bananas.

"Dinner will be ready in a few minutes." Hermione said not looking up at him as she stirred.

He walked over to the turkey and picked a piece off.

"Get off!" Hermione shouted at him smacking his hand away.

"Alright, alright…" he murmured heading for the sofa.

On the way he noticed that the table was set for three."

"Uh, Granger…I know living here is no walk in the park, but you've set the table for three, and let me remind you again that there are only two of us." he said sarcastically holding up two of his long fingers. She ignored his comments and continued to carry food to the table, even going as far as pouring three glasses of the mead.

"Mental." Draco said rolling his eyes.

Just then there was a knock at the door. Draco practically jumped out of his seat.  
"I hope this is Dumbledore again telling us that he was just kidding and we can go back to school." he said heading for the door. Hermione just smiled thinly at him.

"Just get the door." she said.

He reached for the knob and turned it opening the door into the face of their mystery guest.

"Oh my gods…" Draco gasped. "What are you doing here?"

* * *


	12. How to learn from other's mistakes

**Author's Note: I am so so so sorry about the delay in updating. But I have some good news! We bought a house! Yay us! So we have been busy with getting things ready, secuing loans and inspections. But I sat down tonight and wrote out what I have been thinking of in my head for weeks. I know there hasn't been much Dramione action in the last couple of chapters but that will change soon. And they just might get back to Hogwarts sooner rather than later. Also keep our foster son in your prayers. They want to give him back to people who cannot take care of themselves let alone a baby. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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How to learn from other's mistakes 

"That's not quite the greeting I expected." the woman entering the cabin said. She took off her fur shawl and looked around at the cramped environment.

"Mother…" stuttered Draco. "I didn't expect to see you…I, uh…how did you get here?" he said shutting the door behind her and hurrying to take her shawl. She turned to him and placed a thin kiss on his flushed cheek.

"Well Headmaster Dumbledore owled me and asked me to come. Miss Granger here thought it would be a good idea." she said smiling in a warm way at Hermione. Hermione smiled back and continued to bring food to the table.

"Why?" he said directing his attention to Hermione.

"I thought you would want to spend the holidays with your mum. I never go home for the holidays anymore anyway. My parents are too busy skiing and going on holiday." she said putting on a smile. "Besides, what else could I get the boy who has everything?"

Draco's jaw dropped.

"Here Mrs. Malfoy, let me get your chair." Hermione said rushing to the blonde woman's side and pulling out her chair.

"Why thank you Miss Granger. But please, call me Narcissa." she said as she sat down.

"Please, everyone calls me Hermione…well mostly everyone." she said looking at Draco. He had a look of great apprehension on his face.

"I hope my son has not been too unbearable. A trait he inherited from his father I'm afraid." she said looking sternly at Draco who had taken a seat beside her.

"Oh, he has been quite pleasant for the most part." Hermione lied.

"Good." Narcissa replied looking at her son. "I would hate to think he's behaved in an inappropriate way."

Draco flushed again but said nothing.

"I hope the food is alright." Hermione said putting the finishing touches on the table. "I've never really cooked a big meal before."

"Oh I was under the impression that you were muggle born." Narcissa replied in a surprised way.  
"Well, yes I am, but what has that got to do with cooking?" Hermione asked.

"Well," Narcissa said somewhat flustered. "I assumed you didn't have a house elf to cook for you."

"I don't."

"Who did the cooking for your family then dear?" Narcissa asked sipping the mead Hermione had poured.

"My mum, sometimes my dad if he was home. I learned most from my grandmother though."

"Muggles can be simply amazing." Narcissa said in a matter of fact voice. Draco stared at her as if he had never heard her say anything so ridiculous. Hermione didn't know if she was being sincere or not. Knowing Draco the way she did it was possible Narcissa was simply being patronizing.

"Any idea when you will be leaving here and getting back to school?" she asked Draco.

He shrugged his shoulders and avoided her eyes.

"It's not that I haven't _tried_ mother." Draco drawled.

Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Well I have." he said looking at her sarcastic attitude.

"Yeah you have." Hermione replied. She stood up to get more pudding for the table.

"Draco I hope you have been trying." she told her son sternly.

"Unfortunately it takes both of us mother, and if you had to live with Granger you would realize that it is utterly hopeless to get along with her."

Hermione's face turned red and she bit her tongue so that the things she was thinking would not escape her lips. Narcissa must have sensed her anger. She stood up and walked over to her, putting a light hand on her shoulder. Her voice was soft and light when she spoke so that her son could not hear.

"I know what its like to live with a Malfoy. My son has inherited some of his fathers more unfortunate habits. But I hope he can get past these silly ideals while he is still young."

She took the bowl of pudding from Hermione and placed it by her son on the table. Hermione stood there for a moment thinking.

"You know Narcissa," Hermione started "Headmaster Dumbledore asked us to get gifts for each other. I simply can't wait to open Draco's gift." she smiled at both Malfoy's. Draco avoided her eyes.

"I'm sure my son picked out something lovely and tasteful." she replied almost adoringly speaking not to Hermione directly, but emphasizing the words to Draco. He didn't look at his mother either.

"Everything looks wonderful." Narcissa said brightly. She took the precisely folded napkin off of her plate and placed it on her lap. Hermione took her seat next to Narcissa and across from Draco.

The look on Draco's face was priceless during dinner. He barely spoke a word throughout the meal even though Hermione and Narcissa were getting on quite well. When the meal was finished Hermione cleared the dishes with a flick of her wand and Draco escorted his mother to the sofa in front of the roaring fireplace.

"This is quite cozy." she remarked. Hermione sat in one of the empty chairs.

"Well this was quite nice of you Hermione. I was so upset when I couldn't spend Christmas with my son."

"Well it's the least I could do…" Hermione replied nearly blushing.

"And the meal was delicious. You really went through a lot of trouble. Didn't she Draco?"

"Yeah." he replied. He knew it was coming. Granger was expecting a gift. A gift he didn't bother to get. And on top of it all his mother was here. Miss perfect manners. She would be so disappointed that he didn't follow the headmaster's instructions.

"So Draco….don't you have something you would like to give Hermione?" Narcissa asked.

Draco sat there; stony and silent.

"Draco…" she whispered. "Go and get the gift."

"I can't." he replied softly. "I didn't get her anything."

Hermione heard what was said but pretended not to.

"You didn't get her a gift? After Dumbledore told you to? And after she went through all the trouble she had to so that I would be able to visit you for Christmas?" she said a bit forcefully.

"No I didn't!" he shouted at the both of them. He stood up to pace the room. "I didn't get you a gift Granger because I didn't think you were getting me anything! I didn't think after the way I have treated you that you would go through all of this for me. So there you have it. I'm thoughtless and inconsiderate. Mother you should be totally ashamed of me." he said throwing his hands up into the air and falling back onto the sofa.

"Well…" Narcissa said flustered. "I am so sorry about this Hermione. Let me make this up to you."

"No, no." Hermione said softly. "I didn't really expect him to get me anything. With all the tension here I'm sure he's had his mind on other things." she looked poignantly at Draco.

"That's no excuse!" Narcissa shouted. "This lovely girl went out of her way for you. I thought after what happened to your father you would rethink this attitude he taught you. This discrimination for muggleborns. Do you realize your father is dead because of these ideas? I didn't want to tell you on Christmas but I sold the manor. Your father left us in quite a bit of debt. I was lucky to find a buyer. I bought a smaller home and dismissed all but one of the elves."

Draco's mouth hung open. Hermione felt terrible for the both of them but kept quiet.

"Mum, I didn't mean to…"

"Don't Draco. I put up with excuses from your father for almost 18 years. No more." she dabbed her eyes with a lace handkerchief from her pocketbook.

"I'm so sorry Narcissa." Hermione said moving closer and putting her arm around the crying woman. "If I had known I wouldn't have…"

"Don't make this about you." she replied. "I spent a lot of time making excuses for things that went wrong while I was married to Lucius. I loved him so much that I accepted everything he said or did as the final word. I didn't realize until he was locked in Azkaban how wrong I was. And then when he died…" she started sobbing again.

"Mum, look…I didn't realize it was such a big deal. I'll get her a gift if it means that much to you." He hated seeing his mum cry.

"I don't want anything." Hermione snapped.

"I think I should go." Narcissa said. "Thank you Hermione. I had a lovely time. I'm sorry for my son's lack of manners. I thought I taught him better."

She embraced Hermione warmly.

"Good-bye." Hermione replied.

Narcissa turned to Draco and looked at him sadly.

"Think about what I said son. I love you more than anything. But I won't be able to forgive myself if you turn into a younger version of your father." She put her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek.

"I love you too mum."

Draco handed her the fur shawl. She put it on and headed for the door.

"Thank you again." she replied waving them to the door and then disappearing with a small pop.

Draco turned around and headed for his bed.

Hermione pulled the silver barrette out of her hair and entered the bathroom slamming the door behind her.

"What a complete prat!" she said to herself tearing off the dress robes and pulling her hair back into its usual ponytail. "You are an idiot Hermione Granger to think that Draco Malfoy would change…even on Christmas."

A few minutes later she emerged from the bathroom dressed in pink satin pajamas. Draco was no where to be seen. Hermione opened the front door and looked out into the inky blackness of the island. Only the sheen of moonlight on the ocean gave off any light outside of the cabin.

"Malfoy?" she called. No answer. She stepped outside cautiously. Though the island was warm a chilly breezed blew through the palm trees. Her footsteps left soft impressions in the sand. She walked down to the beach where they first arrived. He was sitting on the ocean's edge staring out into the blank waves.

"Malfoy are you okay?"

Right away she knew it was a dumb question.

'Of course he's not okay.' she thought. 'He just lost everything he's ever known.'

"Come down to have a laugh?" he asked flatly.

"No! I would never…"

"Oh that's right; miss perfect Hermione Granger would never kick a man while he's down." Hermione could hear the sarcasm in his voice.

"I didn't mean for any of this to happen Malfoy. How could I have known? I was just trying to do something nice for you for Christmas."

"Why? I've been horrible to you. I've called you names, pressured you into things made fun of you, your parents, your upbringing and your friends. And still you thought up this wonderful gift for me. I just don't understand what the catch is."

Hermione sat down on the damp sand next to him.

"There is no catch Malfoy. It's just as I told you. You have everything. There is nothing I could buy you that you don't already have. I know you missed your mum and I couldn't think of a better way for you to spend Christmas than with someone who really loves you."

He looked over at her, realizing how sincere she was.

"Thank you. And I'm sorry I didn't get you a gift. I will make it up to you. When we get back I will get you something really nice."

"No, I actually think that apology was enough." she said smiling at him. "Now let's get back. It's getting a little cold for my taste."

He nodded and stood up holding his hand out for her. She took it and stood up as well.

"Thank you."

She went to take her hand back but he kept it locked within his own.

"Thank you Hermione."

"You're welcome Draco." she said before he put his arms around her, hugging her tightly. She didn't know how to react other than to hug him back. They broke apart; somewhat embarrassed. He took off his coat and draped it over shoulder. She smiled up at him. Realizing how sweet he could be if he wanted to.

The fire had died out by the time they got back to the cabin so Draco relit it. The warm glow soon filled the tiny cabin.

Hermione sat on the sofa and Draco made two cups of tea. He sat down next to her giving her one of the cups.

"Thanks." she replied.

Hermione sipped her tea feeling very warm and sleepy. Soon she was sound asleep. He took the cup from her hand and placed it on the table. He then grabbed a warm blanket to cover her up with.

"Merry Christmas Hermione." he said pulling the blanket up to her chin Without thinking he placed a gentle kiss on her forehead before settling down on the sofa next to her and drifting off to sleep.


	13. How to face your fears

**A/N Hello everyone! I hope your new year is off to a great start. Our baby is turning one in a week! How time flies! So things are busy here. Did anyone else see the Weasley family tree on JKrowling's site? Its behind the closed door. And it has Draco and Luna's on there as well. Apparently Draco married a girl named Asteria Greengrass. I'm assuming she's related to the Daphne Greengrass that was in the same year Slytherin. And poor Scorpious' middle name is Hyperion...weird. Apparently Hyperion was the son of Titan and it is also one of Saturn's moons. I guess the star theme had to follow through to this poor child. Lol...Also Bill and Fleur had three kids, Victore, Dominique and Louis. Charlie was single, George married Angelina and had two kids named Fred and Roxanne. Percy married a girl named Audrey and they had two daughters named Molly and Lucy. Luna married a guy named Rolf and they had two children. Lorcan and Lysander. Oh and Harry and Ginny's daughter Lily, her middle name is Luna. Okay, enough ramblling. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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How to face your fears 

Christmas morning dawned brightly with a warm sun rising in the sky. Vivid rays of sunshine shone though the windows hitting Hermione directly in the eyes. She opened them cautiously and looked around. A large warm blanket was draped over her. Two half empty cups of tea lay forgotten on the table nearby. And to her surprise Draco Malfoy was fast asleep at the other end of the sofa. She carefully removed the blanket and tiptoed to the bathroom so as not to wake him up. After splashing cool water on her face she brushed her hair and pulled it back into a loose bun. She stopped to think about last night. How sweet he could be when he let his guard down. And then she had the strangest memory. She could have sworn she saw him kiss her on the forehead.

'I must have been dreaming…' she thought to herself 'I wasn't fully awake. That's it.'

Hermione took a deep breath and left the bathroom. Draco was still sleeping on the sofa. Hermione began to make breakfast. Somehow it didn't feel like Christmas day to her. There was no snow. There was no tree.

"Happy Christmas." came a voice from the couch. Draco was sitting up and stretching his arms.

"Happy Christmas." she said in reply. "Sleep well?"

"Actually I did."

"Are you hungry? I thought I would make breakfast."

"Starved." he replied heading into the bathroom.

She made some eggs and sausages and cut up some leftover fruit. By the time Draco was done in the bathroom breakfast was ready.

"Wow, this looks great." he said sitting down and eating enthusiastically. Hermione smiled and began to eat as well.

About halfway into the meal a giant owl swooped into the room and deposited several large packages onto the floor before flying away.

"Presents!" Hermione said happily running to the pile. Draco swallowed his food and walked over to the pile of gifts.

Harry had sent her a set of quills. All different types of feathers. Eagle, peacock, quail and phoenix. And a few bottles of color changing ink. Ron had sent her some squirting flowers that she assumed he found funny. Ginny sent her a charm bracelet with silver Hogwarts mascots and the schools crest dangling from a silver chain. Inside that small box was a note

'_Check your diary once and a while…'_

Hermione smiled. She had been so preoccupied with preparing for Christmas Eve that communication with Ginny had been all but forgotten. She looked over at Draco. He had one small gift.

"From your mum?" Hermione asked nonchalantly. He nodded as he opened the package. A gold signet ring lay on a velvet cushion inside. She could see the 'M' encrusted with jewels from where she sat.

"Its beautiful." she said looking at it more carefully.

"It was my dads." he replied. She had already figured that out but said nothing. "When I was little I always wanted this ring…" he told her. A note of sadness in his voice. "I wanted to be just like him. Even when they took him to Azkaban I was proud that he went in service to the dark lord."

"Everyone looks up to their parents." Hermione said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, everyone does. But mine even more so. I wanted to be him. But now…"

"Now?"

"Now I think my mum is right. Where has it left us? His family should have been more important to him. And now we have to suffer."

"I'm sorry. But your mum loves you."

"Yeah she does."

"And it's Christmas day."

"Yes it is."

"And we are getting along for once."

"Very true."

"So let's go back to breakfast and finish eating."

Draco stood up and held out his hand for Hermione. She took it and he pulled her to her feet. Stumbling a little she fell against his chest. He caught her on either side of her shoulders and steadied her.

"Thanks…" she said not looking up. A strong, spicy scent caught her nose when she landed on him. And it was extremely appealing to her. They sat back down and ate quietly. When breakfast was finished they both cleared the table and Hermione sat down on the sofa and started reading her transfiguration book.

"Don't you ever give the homework a rest?" he asked her.

"What else is there to do?" she asked shutting the book and putting it on the table.

"We have to get a Christmas tree still." he said.

"Here?"

"Yes here." he replied. "Get dressed and we will go look."

Hermione was skeptical but got dressed in some comfy sweat pants and a t-shirt. Draco threw on a clean shirt with his flannel pajama bottoms. Both barefoot they set off into the wild of the island.

"Just because Dumbledore brought us food we shouldn't just go back empty handed." she told him as she picked up berries and nuts along the way. By the time they reached the ocean shore both of their pockets were full of food but they had yet to see a something that could pass for a Christmas tree.

"I don't think there are any pine trees on this island." she said turning her face towards the strong breeze. She didn't like the smell of it. It smelled like a storm was coming. Her stomach turned in knots just thinking about it. Draco must have sensed it because he turned towards the direction the wind was coming from. A concerned look passed over his face and he put his hand on the small of Hermione's back leading her away from the open beach.

"There!" he said pointing at a small straggling palm tree.

"What?"  
"There is our tree. Right there waiting." he pointed his wand at the small tree and said "Diffendo!"

The trunk severed near the base and fell over. Draco grabbed the bottom and began to drag it back to the cabin.

"It's kind of small." she said wrinkling her nose.

"It'll be great." he said leading the way.

Hermione still stunned followed closely behind. She picked flowers and some inedible berries on the way back as well. He dropped the tree inside and began to rearrange the furniture to accommodate the new item. Hermione grabbed a pot and went outside to fill it with sand. They stuck the trunk inside the sand to stabilize it before setting it in the corner near the fireplace.

"Here." she said handing him some flowers which they both placed carefully on the leaves using a sticking charm. Hermione strung some of the inedible berries and used them as garland. They stood back and looked at their handy work.  
"It looks nice." she said admiring the tree.

"Yes it does."

A howl of wind whipped by the cabin.

"It's just wind." he told her. She nodded nervously but kept fussing with the flowers and things on the tree.

"Do you want a fire lit?"

"That would be nice." she said. She heard more howling from outside. Draco proceeded to light the fire and settle into the chair. Shades of orange danced across his face and strands of unkempt hair fell over his eyes. A sudden chill came over Hermione and she covered herself with the blanket that lay near her feet. Outside the wind grew more restless, shaking the tiny cabin just slightly.

"I hope we are not in for another storm." a hint of worry hidden in her tone.

"As I said before, Dumbledore wouldn't leave us here unprotected. We are safe as long as we are inside this cabin. And we have our wands now. So try to relax."

She nodded and looked back to the fire's warm glow.

Within the hour rain was pelting the soft ground leaving tiny imprints in the sand. The sky was a horrible greenish grey and Hermione's previously neat nails were bitten down to their stumps. Draco tried to break the tension every once and a while by making light conversation. Although, he felt like she looked. His insides were turning, not from the storm but by the prospect of moving and losing the important way living at 'Malfoy Manor' made him feel. By the time the storm was at its peak Hermione was beyond consoling. He tried to say something to her but it was no use.

"I know…" she said. "I know it's just a storm. I know we are safe in here. I just can't help it." she cried. Burying her hands in her face tears streamed from her deep brown eyes. Draco stood up and sat back down next to her. He put a hand on her shoulder.

"I think I know how you can get over this fear."

Hermione stopped crying for a moment and looked up at him.

"I can't…I've tried. It's just one of those things. Kind of like your fear of muggleborn witches." she replied. Only half serious.

"No really. But you have to trust me. Can you do that?"

She cocked her head to one side and looked at him. Did she trust him? He had protected her before but they had so many arguments since the last storm.

"Well?" he asked.

"I trust you." she replied. He held out his hand for her and she took it.

"You have to close your eyes."

She did but opened one of them quickly.

"Why?"

"Just do it."

"Okay, okay."

"I'm going to put a blanket over you."

Now she was starting to worry. She would be totally vulnerable. And that was not a feeling that she enjoyed.

"Trust." he said as he tossed the blanket over her head and then grabbed his wand off of the side table.

"Silencio." he whispered and pointed his wand at the outside window.

"What was that?" Hermione's muffled voice said from underneath the blanket.

"Nothing. Now stand up."

She did carefully, wobbling for only a moment. Draco steadied her with his hand and led her towards the doorway.

"Where are we…"

"Ah, no more questions Miss Granger." he said in a good impression of Dumbledore. "Just trust me."

She nodded as he led her out the door and into the storm.

Hermione felt the soft, wet sand underneath her feet and started to panic.

"Draco, I…uh…I can't do this." she halted her feet and stood her ground

"Don't make me pick you up and carry you down there Granger." he said sternly.

"You wouldn't dare!" she said nervously.

"Try me." he said grabbing her around the waist and throwing her over his shoulder. She kicked at bit. And screamed a lot. The blanket was now soaking wet and heavy.

He walked down to the beach and deposited her on the sand.

"The storm must be over right?" she asked. "I don't hear any wind or thunder."

"Yeah, it's just raining now. We missed the opportunity for you to face your fear." he replied in a patronizing voice. Meanwhile the wind was whipping his hair and claps of thunder boomed every few seconds. Neither could be heard due to Draco's charm.

"Well I'm not scared of rain…" she said sarcastically. "So can I take this blanket off now? I can hardly move with it on."

Draco lifted the blanket off of her head. At the second he did a flash of lighting lit Hermione's face and Draco saw the plain look of terror on her face. She seemed to have stopped breathing.

"What…why?" she gasped out.

"I put a silencing charm on the wind and thunder. But I'm going to take it off now."

"No, not yet." she said grasping at his shirt.

"Yes, it's the only way." he removed the charm quickly. A loud boom of thunder echoed through the air. Hermione made a break for the cabin but Draco grabbed her by the arm and held her in place.

"There is nothing to worry about Hermione." he shouted over the clamor of the storm. She started sobbing again.

"We're going to die!" she screamed at him. "And then you will be happy! One less mudblood in the world."

"We are not going to die." he told her. He grasped her upper arms and spun her around to face him. "You are strong. Probably the strongest person I've met. This storm is nothing compared to your temper."

Hermione laughed a little.

"You are not a little girl alone in your bed. You have friends and family. You are not alone anymore."

"Neither my friends or family are here." she sobbed. Their voices grew louder to compete with the thunder and crashing of waves.

"I'm here!" he said loudly. He pulled her closer to him.

"Only because you have to be!" she sobbed. "You aren't my friend. And you aren't family!" She looked up at his face. His stormy grey eyes looked down on her. His wet hair plastered to his face and drops of rain were dripping from his eyelashes. Her heart was pounding inside of her head. As if in slow motion she watched his head lower towards hers. Instinctively she stood on her tip toes and extended her neck towards him. The rain pelted them but somehow this small storm seemed insignificant to her right then. His lips grew closer to hers. She had never noticed how full and pink they were. Then they connected with hers. A warm feeling enveloped her body. His lips were just as soft as she remembered them to be. But this time it was different. No potion was controlling either of them. And she was not kissing him out of anger or something to prove either. This was different. She felt his hands let go of her shoulders. One of them wrapped around her waist and pulled her up to him. The other went behind her head, keeping her lips against his. She opened her mouth slightly and ran her tongue against his lips. He opened his mouth and touched his tongue to hers. Shivers ran down her body. More thunder crashed around them but neither noticed. Ten foot waves crashed on the shore making deafening noise. Hermione's hand ran up his chest. His white t-shirt was soaked through. A bolt of lightning illuminated his face as she touched him. He picked her up for the second time that night and laid her of on the white sand beach. The waves broke right at their feet as he kissed her. Harder and more passionate than he could ever remember kissing anyone. The storm lay forgotten in Hermione's mind as her body reacted to his expert touch. Her hands ran through his sopping wet hair carefully brushing it off his forehead out of his eyes. He smiled into her mouth.

"Thanks." he murmured breaking the kiss.

"You're welcome." she replied trying to catch her breath.

"Hermione?"

"Yes?" she replied.

"The storm's over."

"I suppose it is. I hadn't really noticed." she replied smiling.


	14. How to celebrate New Year's eve

**A/N Hello everyone! I hope your new year is going great. We are still trying to move so I thought I would get another chapter out while I could. Things are going to get interesting now. ;) Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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How to celebrate New Years Eve 

Things on the island were quite different after the storm. For the first time Hermione didn't feel embarrassed about what happened between them. In fact she was proud of herself for getting over her fear. And surprised that Draco Malfoy had been the one to show her how strong she could be. Unfortunately, the kiss, the storm and the excitement of the holidays had taken over the both of their minds. The urn lay forgotten on the far end of the kitchen counter. They had not attempted to use it to return to Hogwarts. And professors Dumbledore and McGonagall couldn't understand why.

"Headmaster, this had gone on long enough. They are getting along now aren't they?"

Dumbledore nodded.

"Then go to them and tell them they can return to school. It's ludicrous to allow them to stay any longer. They have already missed nearly three months of the school year."

"You underestimate them Professor." Dumbledore smiled wisely.

"I would never underestimate those two. But something tells me you know something I don't." she replied reading the headmasters knowing look.

"Young miss Granger and mister Malfoy have not tried to return to Hogwarts because they are not ready to return. One is good for the other. You will see." Professor Dumbledore looked into a small mirror on his desk before folding his hands and smiling. "Yes, I think you will be seeing the head boy and girl sooner than you think."

Back on the island Draco had figured out that it was New Year's Eve. He knew he screwed up by not getting Hermione a Christmas present. But he intended to make it up to her tonight. He had something planned but needed a few more things. And it was already late in the afternoon. He made a small list and intended to send it off with the owl that had brought their new assignments for after the holidays. But, as he found out Dumbledore was full of tricks. A second owl swooped into the room and dropped a small box onto the table. Draco stuck the list in his pocket and opened the letter attached to the box.

_Mister Malfoy, _

_This morning I had the feeling you might need some of these items for your New Year's Eve celebration. I hope to see you and Miss Granger soon. _

_Albus Dumbledore_

_Headmaster of Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry_

Draco had a confused look on his face when Hermione entered the room. She had gone down to the lagoon for a swim.

"What's that?" she asked.

"Just some stuff my mum sent to me. Dumbledore was nice enough to pass it on."

"Oh, alright. I'm going to take a bath." she said turning around and heading towards the bathroom.

As soon as she was out of sight he opened the box. The first thing he took out were five, large, red pillar candles. They were cinnamon scented he found out as he smelled them.

"Nice touch." he said smiling. Next he pulled out a box that was labeled 'Miss Granger only please.' Shrugging he put the box aside and dug down further. It seemed the box held more than it appeared. A bottle of non-alcoholic sparkling champagne was the next thing he found. More food was at the bottom as were some decorations. Finally he found a box that has 'Mister Malfoy only please' written on it. He heard Hermione coming out of the bath and quickly shoved all the stuff back in the box and pushed it under the bed.

"What did your mum send you?" she asked drying her hair with a towel.

"Oh just some pictures and a letter." he told her.

"Oh, well shall we get started on our school assignments?"

"Sometimes Hermione I worry about you." he said smirking.

"You know…Harry and Ron say the same thing. I wonder why that is?"

"I think I know their pain now." he replied.

"So if you don't want to start on that what should we do today?"

"Well it is New Year's eve…" he told her.

"Oh it is? I never gave that particular holiday much thought. It always seemed like all the Gryffindor girls would hurry about, fussing about their appearances and worrying if they would get kissed at midnight.It just seemed like such a waste of time to me."

"Well then let's just forget that it's even a holiday. But I don't want to spend the day doing schoolwork."

"Okay, but you know how far behind we are…"

"We will start on our work tomorrow. Agreed?"

"Agreed." Hermione replied.

Draco walked in the kitchen and looked around. He needed to find Hermione something to do to get her out of the cabin while he prepared the surprise.

"We are running low on essentials." he said aloud in a serious tone. "Why don't you go to the north side of the island and see what you can find. I will go to the south beach and the rocky area and see if any crab or fish are in the shallow pools."

"Sounds like a good idea." she replied. She grabbed a small basket and headed out towards the North end of the island. Draco quickly grabbed the box and set to work.

An hour and a half later Hermione returned to the cabin. The sun was just setting but the cabin was deserted.

"Draco should be back by now." she said to herself. Hermione set the basket of fruit on the end table. On the kitchen counter were a box and a note.

_Hermione,_

_Please put on what's in this box and join me at the beach on the south side of the island. _

_DM_

Hermione looked oddly at the box that read 'Miss Granger only please'. And then she opened the top. Inside was a bathing suit. Well she used that term loosely. It was a purple bikini top and bottom and a matching sarong with purple and yellow flowers. A tropical flower attached to a pink headband was also inside.

"He has got to be kidding." she said holding up the items for further inspection. "I can not wear this."

She sat there for fifteen minutes debating over the outfit. On one hand it was obvious that Draco had gone through some trouble to plan something and she didn't want to seem snobbish or ungrateful. But on the other hand she had never worn anything so revealing on purpose before. In the end she decided to put on the bathing suit and go down to the beach. She hurried herself getting ready in the bathroom. First she pulled her wild hair into a pony tail and then wrapped it into a bun on the left side of her head. A few bangs swept across her forehead. She put the headband on before applying some light makeup and pink lip gloss. Hermione put on the bikini and sarong before dabbing some of her special perfume on.

'Why am I so nervous?' she thought. 'I look alright.' Hermione turned slowly in front of the mirror. Sighing heavily she left the bathroom and headed towards the beach. The sun was nearly touching the water by the time she reached the beach.

"Draco?" she called out. But there was no reply. "Draco? Where are you?"

She turned to the left and her breath caught in her throat. Under a group of palm trees was a small table with two chairs. Candles illuminated the small area. The sky was clear and flecked with millions of stars. The full moon shone down on the rolling waves giving the beach a silvery glow. Draco emerged from some shrubbery nearby with an armful of tropical flowers.

"Oh, I didn't expect you so quickly." he said putting the flowers down on the ground near the table. He was wearing blue swim trunks and a white cotton button up shirt. His blond hair blew wildly in the warm tropical breeze.

Hermione had no words. For once in her life she was speechless.

"Are you okay?" he asked walking towards her. She nodded. "Well then come have a seat." Draco took her by the hand and led her to the table. He pulled out a chair for her.

"Thanks." she replied. He sat down across from her and smiled.

"What?" she asked, feeling very naked and self conscious.

"You look beautiful."

"Thanks…I, uh…what?" she asked. This sudden, romantic side of him was throwing her off.

"I said you look beautiful. Would you like some sparkling champagne?"

"Yes please."

Draco poured two glasses of the bubbly liquid and handed one of them to her. She sipped it quietly thinking how surreal this whole situation was.

"You are quiet tonight." he remarked.

"Sorry. I'm just blown away by all this."

"Well that was the general idea." he smirked. Hermione laughed. "I felt terrible about Christmas. And not just because my mum was here. I just wanted to do something nice for you and tell you how much I appreciated you bringing her here for Christmas."

Blushing, Hermione sipped her drink.

"It was the least I could do. After all what do you get the boy who has everything already?"

"Not anymore." he replied.

"Oh my gods, I am so sorry. I wasn't thinking…"

"No, it's alright. I've relied on my family's wealth for all of my life. Everyone knows that. It is…or was part of my personality. And because my financial status is changing, maybe I should as well."

"That's very astute of you Draco." Hermione replied. Draco smiled at her.

"So let's change the subject." she said sensing that it was still a touchy subject.

"What would you like to talk about?" he asked her.

"Oh, I don't care. Anything you would like." Her eyes were focused on his moonit skin.

"Are you hungry?"

"Starved."

He stood up and walked a few feet to the right. When he returned he had a silver platter in his hands and the urn filled with water. Slowly he lifted the lid and revealed a roast chicken, pineapple, citrus fruit and an assortment of summer vegetables.

"Where did you…" she said in asonishment.

"Dumbledore. He sent them. I was getting ready to send an owl to ask for some things but he was one step ahead of me."

"He always is."

"Here let me get you a plate." he said grabbing a plate and heaping a little of everything on it.

"Thank you."

Draco made himself a plate and sat across from her and they began eating.

"The food is delicious."

"Remind me to thank the headmaster." he grinned.

When the food was gone and they felt very full and content, they went and sat on the beach and let the ocean water skim their toes.

"Too bad there isn't a pureblooded witch here with you. This could be very romantic." she told him with a hint of amusement in her voice.

He turned and looked down at her. Silver streaks of light shone in her hair. He could see stars in her deep coffee colored eyes.

"Who needs them?" he replied. Not realizing that his head was leaning down towards hers once again. It was if an invisible force drove him towards her. Like polar opposites of a magnet. Then his lips connected with hers and he felt that same wonderful tingling sensation in his body that he had before. She opened her mouth slightly and he took full advantage of it. His tongue slipped gingerly inside of her mouth and a small sound escaped her mouth and was immediately captured by his. Draco's right hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer to him. Her heart was beating hard inside her chest. Every time she kissed him it felt like a new and exciting experience. Hermione's hand trailed up his back and stroked the back of his neck softly. Shivers ran up his spine at her touch. It was so unlike anything either of them had ever experienced. He pushed her slightly to see if she would bend to his touch. And she did. Soon she was lying underneath him in the sand. Her hands explored his chest and lower back. And he pulled the elastic from her hair letting it spill onto the sand and flow around her head. One by one the buttons of his shirt were unbuttoned and he tossed it aside. It blew down the beach in the strong breeze. Draco hair whipped around his head. His hand trailed from her back to her thighs and then back up to her chest. Deftly he removed her bathing suit top and tossed it aside where it blew to parts unknown. Soft white skin and pink nipples were met with his lips a second later. Hermione looked up at the stars as he kissed and sucked his way up and down her exposed chest. She imagined that heaved would be a let down after this. Boldy she pushed him off and he landed on the sand on his back. She crawled over to him and straddled his lap. She looked unsure of what to do, but she finally settled on kissing his upper chest. He smiled as he watched her. Hermione Granger was on top of him getting him more aroused than he could ever remember being. Her breasts were magnificent works of art. The perfect size and shape for her body. She kissed her way up to his neck and then to his mouth. She kissed him deeply. Her bare chest pressed against his giving him a deep feeling of warmth and comfort. When she finally broke the kiss they were both out of breath. Hermione felt very naked. She took off her sarong and wrapped it around her chest, tying it in the front.

"Thirsty?" he asked.

"Parched." she replied.

"Let me get you some water." he said.

"No, you've done enough. I'll get it."

They walked over to the small table and inadvertently reached for the urn at the same time. As soon as their hands touched the brass urn they were jerked backwards at a mind numbing rate and landed on their bums on a hard, cold surface.

When they regained their vision they realized they were in a dark, cold office surrounded by books and odd looking instruments.

"Welcome back Mr. Malfoy and Miss Granger." said a voice from the other end of the room.


	15. How to get back to normal

**A/N Hello everyone! Happy early Valentine's day. I know this chapter is a bit short, but I needed it to end where it did. I hope you like it. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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How to get back to normal 

Slowly Draco and Hermione turned around. The voice definitely did not belong to professor Dumbledore. It was low and cold. Professor Snape was standing near the window in the corner. His arms were folded across his chest and strands of greasy hair hung limply around his face.

"P…professor…" Draco stuttered. "I didn't expect to see you here. I didn't expect to be here tonight either."

Hermione kept silent and tried to cover her nearly exposed body.

"Were you two planning to stay holed up on that island forever?" he sneered.

"We were trying to get along." Hermione said. Snape shot her a look that plainly told her to be quiet.

"Why are you two in such a state of undress? I was under the impression that you weren't getting along…" his voice was dripping with sarcasm. "But it looks to me as if you are getting along too well. I hope that this little tryst didn't cross the line."

Draco and Hermione shook their heads no.

"Very well. I will inform Professor Dumbledore that you have returned. For now go to your head's quarters and stay there until he summons you. And for Merlin's sake Miss Granger, cover up." he tossed her a cloak that drenched her body in black fabric. She wrapped it around herself and Draco helped her stand up.

"That will be all." Snape said coldly. Draco caught his eye and he yanked Draco's arm away from Hermione. "Wait in the hallway Miss Granger." he told her.

"What?" Draco said innocently.

"What? What? Is that all you can say? I'm not blind or stupid Mr. Malfoy. I know perfectly well was could have happened had you not touched the urn tonight in unison. While you may not think much of Miss Granger I do."

Draco's eyes bulged at this statement.

"But you always criticize her work and tell her she's a know-it-all."

"She is. But she's the brightest student to come out of Hogwarts since Lil…never mind. Regardless, I will not catch the two of you like this again. Understood?"

Draco nodded.

Hermione waited nervously in the hallway. It was late, nearly 3am by the large clock in the main entranceway. She hoped no one would come by and see her wearing Snape's cloak with barely anything else underneath. Rumors about her and the potions master would be sure to follow. Though they would be easier to believe than her and Malfoy any day.

Draco walked out a moment later, head hanging low. He didn't look Hermione in the eye.

"What did he say?" she whispered as they made their way hastily to their quarters.

"That I shouldn't deflower you." he grinned slightly.

"No really." she said softly.

"That is really what he said. Not in those words mind you."

"Oh my gods…" she said burying her face in her hands.

"It will be alright."

"Professor Dumbledore will know as well." she said biting her lip.

"I'm sure he already does."

They walked the stairs quietly. Contemplating the situation. When they got to the portrait guarding the entrance Draco said the password and they headed inside. House elves had lit a cheery fire for them and set out some pumpkin juice and scones.

They sat at the small table and tried to think of things to say to one another.

"At least we don't have classes tomorrow." Hermione finally said.

"Yeah, that's one good thing." he smiled uneasily

More silence followed.

"So now what?" she finally said.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean now that we are back at school how do we act? Your friends hate me. My friends hate you. They expect us to hate each other. So what do we do?" she said. The pit of her stomach was boiling.

"Do you want everything to go back to the way it was before we left?" he asked her.

"No, do you?"

"No."

"So what do we do?"

"I don't know." he replied honestly. "Maybe for now we should just concentrate on getting along in private. We can ease our friends into it."

"I don't know…" Hermione said. "I don't think I can take going back to screaming at one another, even if it's just in public. What if Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy rip into me? Would you go along with it? Or would you stand up for me?" she said. Tears were welling in her eyes.

"I would never go along with it, not anymore." he said taking her hand.

"But would you stand up for me?"

He hesitated.

"You wouldn't." she said wiping her eyes. "I can see you wouldn't."

"I didn't say that."

"But you hesitated. That's what I was afraid of. It's just too much to deal with. Professor Dumbledore should have thought this through better."

"This is complicated." he said. "I don't know all the details. But I'm assuming for the next few days our friends will not let us out of their sight and they will be hounding us for details about where we have been and what we have been doing. I am going to tell them that we were in muggle London doing research for a paper on muggle-wizard relations. We had to pretend to be muggles and talk to them about what they thing magic is and if they believe in it."

Hermione nodded.

"We will tell them that we are not to discuss anything else. Agreed."

"Agreed. But Ginny already knows."

"Just tell her to keep it to herself."

"Ok."

Both of them stood up and headed for their separate bedrooms. When Hermione got to her door she looked back at him.

"I just wanted to thank you for tonight. It was the best New Year's I have ever had." she smiled. He returned her smile before entering his room and shutting the door behind him.

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The next morning Hermione woke up early and headed down to breakfast alone. Dumbledore must not have announced their return because when she entered the hall she was nearly knocked down by Ginny Weasley. 

"HERMIONE! YOU"RE BACK!" she screamed.

"Nice to see you too Gin." she said nearly breathless from being squeezed. Ron ran to her next and picked her up off the floor, spinning her around in circles.

"Hermione, we have missed you so much! How have you been? Did Malfoy treat you alright? When did you get back?" he asked before putting her down. Harry was standing there grinning at her.

"Hi Harry." she smiled.

"Welcome back Hermione." he said before hugging her. "Come on and sit down. I want to hear all about this little adventure you have been on."

Hermione followed her three friends to the Gryffindor table and sat down. Ron piled food onto her plate before following suit and heaping food onto his own.

"Well it was a very boring study about muggle-wizard relations." she said. Ginny rolled her eyes so Hermione kicked her under the table.

"We had to ask muggles what they know about wizards and magic. Then we would write down their response. Then we would obliviate them. Pretty boring."

"Oh get off it Hermione." Ron said in between bites. "You were in muggle London for three months. Don't tell me you didn't go out and explore."

"I didn't. You forget I was with Drac…Malfoy."  
Ron's eyebrows rose slightly.

"Draco?" he asked.

"Dumbledore made us be civil. We had to call each other by our first names. But I don't have to now." she said. She hated lying to them.

Hermione kept watching the Slytherin table for Draco to come down and sit with his friends but he never showed up. Pansy was hanging all over Blaise. Crabbe and Goyle were sitting there like useless lumps without their leader. Soon breakfast was over and she was being ushered off by Ron and Harry to the Quidditch pitch.

"You have to see this new formation we have been working on Hermione." Ron told her.  
"But it's freezing out Ronald!" she shouted in protest. She was used to the warm weather now.

"It's warmer than it has been in weeks." Harry told her. Soon after she was bundled up from head to toe and sitting on the cold hard bleachers next to Ginny.

"So…" Ginny whispered out of the corner of her mouth. "What brings you back to the frigid cold?"

"We were getting along and we accidentally touched the portkey." Hermione told her. She was only half-watching Harry and Ron. She kept looking around for a glimpse of Draco.

"When did you start getting along?"

"I don't really know. But the night we left he made this huge romantic gesture. A moonlit picnic by the beach. He had candles, food and flowers. Then we kind of made out…"

"Kind of made out!" Ginny shouted.

"Shhh…keep it down Gin." Hermione said through her scarf.

"Tell me all about it."

"We were lying on the beach, moonlight streaming down, a million stars twinkling above…"

Ginny sighed.

"We were kissing a little, then my top came off and his as well. And Ginny, it was heaven." Hermione said dreamily.

Ginny smiled goofily at her.

"It sounds like paradise."

"Yeah, the only problem is when we used the portkey to return we landed in Dumbledore's office."

"Well he sent you off, what's the problem?"

"Well we were mostly still undressed."

Ginny's mouth hung open.

"And Dumbledore wasn't there. Snape was."

"Oh my gods!" Ginny shouted.

"Yeah, it wasn't pretty."

"So how are you two getting along now?"

"Well we agreed to stay friends in private. As for in public…that's another matter. We haven't quite hashed that out yet."

"Well it's a start." she said.

By the time Harry and Ron had finished practicing, both Hermione and Ginny were near frozen.

"Great, now I will probably catch pneumonia." Hermione said shivering. "I'm heading upstairs to warm up. I'll see you guys later." Harry, Ron and Ginny headed for Gryffindor tower and Hermione for the heads quarters. Around the third floor she heard voices, and not friendly ones. She ducked behind a suit of armor and located the source. Pansy, Blaise Crabbe and Goyle were all surrounding Draco.

"So the king of Slytherin has finally returned from shacking up with the mudblood." Blaise said his arm around Pansy.

"Don't use that word." Draco hissed. "It causes nothing but trouble, believe me."

"Things have changed around here Drakey." simpered Pansy.

"I can see that. Not that I much care who you shag Pansy, but I thought you had better taste Blaise. Or at least I hope you know some salves and balms to heal the sores you will get."

Pansy folded her arms over her chest.

"Don't be jealous Draco." she said.

"I'm not."

Hermione noticed that they were not standing across from Draco but more like circling him. They reminded her of sharks getting ready to attack their prey.

"People in the house are talking Draco. They seem to think I am a better leader than you are."

"Frankly I don't care." Draco replied.

Blaise smirked. He pulled a rolled up newspaper out of his robes and threw it at Draco. A large picture of Malfoy Manor with a man pounding a 'For Sale' sign into the ground was emblazoned on the front. Next to that was an old picture of his mother. It was from just after his father was imprisoned in Azkaban. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying and she was putting one hand in front of her face to hide in the photo. Draco tossed the paper to the floor.

"This changes nothing." he told them

"Come on Draco," Blaise said silkily. "They are saying that your father left you paupers."

Draco's face flushed.

"What does that have to do with anything?" he asked them. His temper flaring dangerously close to the surface.

"It means you are poor now you half-wit!" Pansy screamed. Crabbe and Goyle doubled over in laughter. "It means that no one in Slytherin wants anything to do with you! It means that you no longer are going to hold court in Slytherin."

"Listen I am head boy and I am not going to be spoken to like that!" Draco shouted.

"We don't care about you being head boy!" Blaise said curtly. "As far as we are concerned you just don't matter anymore. You might as well be a mudblood."

That was it. Draco pulled his arm back and punched Blaise in the nose. Blood squirted in every direction as Hermione heard the sickening crunch of bone and cartilage breaking.

"Fifty points from Slytherin for shouting at the head boy. And another fifty for using the word mudblood. And you can tell the entire house that if I hear them say anything of the sort I will be deducting points from them as well."

He turned on his heel and walked away. And feeling better than she had in a while Hermione came out from behind the suit of armor and dusted off her jeans. Pansy was crouched over Blaise trying to heal his nose with her wand.

"What happened here?" she asked innocently.

"Draco punched Blaise." Pansy whined. "Not that it's your business Granger."

"How dare you make up lies about the head boy! Fifty points from Slytherin." she said grinning before walking away. Downstairs in the entrance hallway she heard the tinkle of emeralds being sucked back into the top of the hourglass. Now all she had to do was find Draco.


	16. How to prove your friendship

**A/N Hello everyone! Well we are finally closing on our house this week so this will probably be the last chapter for at least a few weeks that I will be able to post. I will continue to write them though so I will have lots of new chapters built up when I return. Happy reading and don't forget to review! **

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**How to prove your friendship**

Hermione first went to the head's quarters but Draco wasn't there. She checked the library, the great hall and the potions room. Frustrated, she grabbed her coat and hat again heading for the Quidditch pitch once again. Even from the entrance of the castle she saw Draco's sleek form flying at lightning quick speed around the field. Cold wind whipped across her face as she walked through the ankle deep snow. When she got within earshot she shouted his name.

"Draco!"

He glanced down at her and kept on flying. Now was not a good time. He circled the rings, letting the wind whip through his hair. He didn't have a coat on, but his blood was boiling so that he thought he didn't need one. Faster and faster he flew, ignoring Hermione's pleas from the ground.

Hermione stood there.

'He must not have heard me.' she reasoned. Thinking she would wait for him she took a seat on the lowest bleachers.

He looked down on her and sighed. She was not just going to go away and leave him to work out his anger. Of course she had no idea that he was mad, or so he thought. He hung his head and descended on his broom landing a few feet in front of her.  
"What are you doing here?" he asked "its freezing."

"Yeah, I'm not used to the cold." she admitted.

"So why are you out here?"

"I saw what just happened with your housemates."

His face flushed.

"What were you spying on us?" he said slightly angry.

"No, I was hiding from them behind a suit of armor. I didn't want to have to put you in the situation of defending me or not so soon after our return."

"Well it doesn't matter. I don't need their friendship or approval." he said kicking the ground.

"Of course not." she said comfortingly.

"I don't need yours either." he said glaring.

"Don't take it out on me." she said defensively.

"Sorry." he said tapping the end of his broom on the ground.

"Can I walk with you back to the castle?" she asked him. He nodded but said no more. The wind howled and blew against their bodies. And when they reached the huge wooden doors that opened into the entrance hall they were nearly frozen. The wind beat against the door as they attempted to close it. Harry, Ron and Ginny were exiting the great hall and noticed the pair coming in.

"Hermione, do you want to come with us to the common room? Seamus and Dean wanted to see you" Harry called.

Hermione looked at her friends and then at Draco. She knew he wouldn't admit it but he was very upset about his 'friends' deserting him.

"Oh, thank you Harry but we have head's business to attend to. I will catch up with you later."

The three of them headed off for Gryffindor tower while Draco and Hermione left for their room. They walked quietly down the nearly empty corridors. Passing an occasional student making their way to dinner. Once inside their common room Draco sat on the sofa staring at the roaring fire. Hermione made tea and offered it to him.

"Thanks." he said softly.

"Look, I read the article they were talking about this morning. It doesn't say that your family is poor or anything. All it said is that Lucius made some bad financial choices and that your mother is downsizing since you are almost of age."

"Doesn't matter. Not to me and certainly not to my frie…housemates."

"Then they never were your friends." Hermione said trying to help.

"Well that makes me feel loads better." he replied sarcastically. "So that means for seven years I've been alone and the only reason anyone talked to me was because of my father or my fortune."

"That can't be the only reason." Hermione reasoned. "You were betrothed to Pansy."

"I told you it was arranged. And her family has probably already broken that engagement and started arranging things with someone else. Most likely Blaise."

"You're not jealous are you?" she asked jokingly. She grinned at him and poked him in the side.

"No!" he protested.

"They why worry about it. You know in your heart that you and your mother are well off even by wizard standards. I'm sure your new home will be lovely. And it won't have any of the bad memories that come with old manors like that one."

Draco wouldn't say it but that made him feel better.

"Yeah, but it's not like having my _manor._" he said sulkily. She ran her hand across his arm soothingly.

"Having a manor isn't all that." she insisted. "I didn't grow up in a manor, I grew up in a big, lovely house and I am just fine aren't I?"

He nodded.

"I suppose."

His left hand entwined in her hair and curled several tendrils around his index finger. He realized that she had become a great comfort to him. Someone he could rely on. She noticed his gentle movements and became very aware of their sudden closeness. He drew her eyes to his, but did not speak. He waited several seconds before his lips touched hers. He pulled back almost immediately.

"Sorry." he muttered.

"Its okay." she replied, not looking him in the eye. She wondered what was wrong with her. This whole situation had become strangely surreal. She was forgoing spending time with her friends to willingly comfort Draco Malfoy.

They sat there in silence for a while, neither could think of anything interesting to say.

"Back to classes tomorrow." Hermione finally said.

"Yeah." he affirmed.

"You know…" Hermione remarked. "This is silly for us to feel so awkward all the time."

"Who said I feel awkward all the time?" he asked amused.

"I didn't say _you_ did mister perfect. I'm just saying that we should continue what we started on the island."

His eyebrows rose wickedly.  
"Really Miss Granger? You want to continue where we left off?" He said leaning over her. She scooted back on the couch until her back was against the far arm.

"You know what I mean!" she said. "The friendship…that's all I meant."

"Oh I don't think that's what you meant." he told her, all the while placing both of his arms on either side of her, pinning her down.

Hermione giggled nervously, but she had a huge lump in her throat when she tried to speak in her own defense. His face was within inches of hers and she was lost in the swirl of grey mist that was his eyes. She swallowed hard again, smelling the spicy scent of his skin.

"Well if you're sure." he said grinning before getting up off of the sofa and strolling over to make a cup of tea. Hermione regained her composure and just stared at him. Her heart was drumming wildly in her chest.

"I'm going to go see Harry and Ron." she told him hastily before running out the portrait and out of sight.

Draco watched her go; smiling to himself.

Hermione ran down the hall and to the many staircases of Hogwarts. She raced up the steps as fast as she could towards Gryffindor tower. Faster and faster she ran until she bumped into something, or rather someone, knocking herself and the person to the ground.

"Merlin's beard Hermione!" the voice shouted. It was Ginny.

"Oh Ginny, I'm so glad to see you!" she said. Ginny noticed the look of desperation in her eyes.

"What's wrong?" she asked Hermione.

"Can we go somewhere private to talk?"

Ginny nodded and they entered the Gryffindor common room. There were a lot of people in the common room sitting around the fire. Harry, Ron, Seamus and Dean were sitting by the fireplace.

"I don't want them to see me." Hermione whispered. Ginny nodded and it wasn't too hard to conceal Hermione in the crowd of people. They walked discreetly up the girl's staircase into Ginny's room. None of her roommates were there. She locked the door and used a silencing charm on the room.

"Now what is going on?"

"Oh Ginny I have no idea I swear!" she said throwing her hands in the air. "I just don't know what I'm doing anymore, or what I'm feeling."

"What happened?"

"Just this whole thing with Draco…I don't know if I'm coming or going."

"Well you would definitely know if you were coming…" Ginny replied pretending to be deep in thought.

"GINNY!" Hermione said throwing a pillow at her giggling friend.

"No seriously, did something else happen between you?"

"Just a kiss…" then seeing Ginny's gaping mouth "An innocent kiss, I was comforting him."

"Comforting him?"

"Yes, surely you saw the article about his family in today's paper."

Ginny nodded.

"Well so did all the Slytherins. Apparently now that he doesn't have quite the fortune he once had they have abandoned their former king."

"Oh." Ginny replied.

"He didn't want me to realize how upset he was, but I knew it bothered him. Anyway to make a long story short we were talking about how money didn't really matter and we just sort of kissed. We both were a little embarrassed, and then I left and came up here to gain some perspective."

"Well if you want my opinion…"

Hermione's eyes rolled.

"And you obviously do since you came up here looking for me."

"I wasn't looking for you." Hermione joked. "You just happened to be the first one I knocked to the ground."

"As I was saying…if you want my opinion I think you like him. And he must like you as well…"

"As friends Ginny, just as friends."

"Friends don't go around snogging each other Hermione."

"One kiss isn't snogging!"

"What do you call what you were doing before the portkey returned you to school?"

"Making up?"

"I don't think so." Ginny replied. "Snogging. Snogging with some nakedness. And let's not forget about the euphoria potion."

"Don't remind me."

"Why don't you just trust yourself Hermione? You make good decisions. If you think its right for you to be…friends…with Draco Malfoy, then do it." she made little quotation marks with her fingers when she said 'friends'.

"What about Ron and Harry, and the rest of the Gryffindors. The rest of the school for that matter?"

"You can't just live your life for others. Besides, now that he's been shunned by the Slytherins maybe he will show the side of him that you see to everyone else."

"I doubt that." Hermione said honestly.

"Well whatever you decide, make sure it's what you want." she stood up and headed for the door. "You should probably go say hi to everyone before you go back. I know everyone was worried about you and Malfoy while you were away. If they only knew…" she said winking at Hermione. They walked down the spiral staircase together to raucous laughter coming from the common room. Ron was holding a copy of the Prophet.

"Look at this git!" Ron said, sides nearly splitting from laughter. He held the copy of the paper high for all to see.

Hermione felt sick.

Dean and Seamus were pointing at Draco's mum, snickering at her red eyes and less than perfect appearance.

"She looks a right mess!" Dean said loudly. "Malfoy's probably holed up in his room hiding his ugly mug."

"If she was me mum I would be!" Seamus shouted.

Hermione felt her face become red. She didn't think her friendship would be tested so soon. Ginny looked back and forth between the commotion and Hermione, wondering what she would do. Harry seemed to be the only one not joining in. He seemed withdrawn from the others. He was staring into the fire. Ron was poking him in the side and pointing to the 'For Sale' sign visible in the lower picture. Harry gave a half-smile and returned to his fire gazing.

"What is wrong with you?" Ron asked, seeming quite annoyed. "Malfoy's at his lowest! He's poor! After all the crap he's said to me about my family over the years I would think you would be happy to finally get revenge on that jerk."

Hermione took a deep breath and joined the group.

"Hermione! Hermione did you see this?" he asked, thrusting the paper into her face. She took it from his hand and threw it onto the floor.

"Yes Ronald. I have read the morning paper. Big deal."

"Big deal? Am I the only one to find the irony in this situation? Malfoy's poor! He had to move out of his big, rich house and into a tiny little one. His mum dismissed all the house elves! This is the best day I've had in a long while!" he said flopping back down onto the sofa.

"All of you aught to be ashamed." Ginny said, hands on her hips. Ron looked as if she had smacked him in the face.

"For what?'

"You know exactly how it feels to not have enough money to buy what you want. And you think it's funny that Malfoy has to endure that same torment?" Hermione asked him.

"Well yes." Ron replied honestly.

"Hermione's right." Harry said. "I know what it was like to be the outcast. It's not a fun place to be. I heard some of his mates talking. They want nothing to do with him now. Like money is everything to them."

Ron looked gobsmacked.

"I would hope my friends would be my friends whether I was rich or poor." Harry said.

"Me too." Hermione said.

Ron, Seamus and Dean hung their heads and avoided looking at the others.

"I'm going to my room." Hermione said. "Goodnight Ginny, goodnight Harry." She cast a look at the other three that plainly said not to talk to her.

"Goodnight." Harry and Ginny replied. Ginny took a hold of Harry's hand and squeezed it.

Hermione made her way back to the fifth floor head's quarters feeling like she had passed the first test of their friendship, and knowing that there would be many more to come.


	17. How to put a Slytherin in their place

**A/N Hello everyone! Sorry it's been so long since I've updated. We moved into a new house and then...our caseworker called and wanted to know if we wanted a little girl! Of course we said yes and so we picked her up on Good Friday. We decided to name her Lily Lucille. (I told my husband that the Lily part of it was because we picked her up by Easter, but really...you all should know why I picked it. LOL:) And the Lucille part is after my grandmother. So needless to say with 3 kids in the house I had a hard time finding time to write. But I hope this makes up for it. I also have a new idea for a story but it will be a while before that gets posted. It wil be post Deathly Hallows. 19 years to be exact. And I will try to keep with the idea that they are married to others. Anyway get on with the story. If you want to see a pic of my new daughter check out my myspace page. Happy reading and don't forget to review!!

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How to put a Slytherin in their place

Hermione didn't see Draco that night. He had kept himself locked in his room for the remainder of that evening. The next morning at breakfast Hermione sat down with Harry and Ginny. Seamus, Dean and Ron kept their distance from her in case she blew up at them again.

"I wanted to thank you Harry." Hermione said quietly so that only he and Ginny could hear her.

"For what Hermione?"

"For last night, when the others were having a go at Draco. It meant a lot to me."

"Why? I wasn't under the impression that you were friends with Malfoy or anything."

"Well to tell you the truth…"

But she was interrupted. Draco had walked into the great hall and attempted to sit down at the Slytherin table. Jeers and taunts were thrown at him from everyone at the table. He ignored them and sat down at the end anyway.

"Pathetic." Ginny said looking at the commotion. "How can they be so cruel to their friend?"

"What were you saying again Hermione?" Harry asked trying to get her attention again, but it was in vain.

"Excuse me for a moment Harry." she said not looking at him but at the Slytherin table. She stood up and walked purposefully over.

"Is there a problem?" she asked the rowdy bunch.

"Not at all Mudblood." Pansy spat. "Go back to your loser friends."

All at the table besides Draco laughed.

"Detention Parkinson. Anyone else have something smart to say to me?"

The table grew quiet.

"You can't give me detention Granger." Pansy smirked.

"Watch me." Hermione moved closer to Pansy. Pansy stood up and met her eye to eye.

"Get away from me Mudblood." she said putting her hands on her hips.

"Another detention." Hermione said sharply. "Two Saturdays in a row wasted, like to try for another?"

"Just because you are shagging Malfoy does not make you the queen of Slytherin. In case you haven't noticed his highness has fallen from grace."

"Another detention for making false remarks about the head boy and girl. And 100 points from Slytherin. Looks like you are not the queen either Parkinson."

The other Slytherins were telling Pansy to sit down and shut up. Hermione could tell she was dying to say something else but bit her tongue. Hermione smirked at her and walked down towards Draco.

"Mister Malfoy, we have that thing to discuss, would you mind sitting with us so we can talk about it privately?"

Draco looked at his housemates, nodded at Hermione and took his plate over to the Gryffindor table. Several startled gasps could be heard echoing through the great hall.

"Harry, Ginny, Draco is going to sit with us. Please show him the respect you would show a head boy while I speak with Professor Snape about Parkinson's behavior."

Harry nodded and looked uncomfortably at Draco, who looked just as uncomfortably back. Hermione approached the teacher's table.

"Professor Snape. May I have a word with you?"

"Certainly Miss Granger. What is it?"

"It's Miss Parkinson. She is being rude and disrespectful to me and Mister Malfoy. She used the word 'Mudblood' on more than one occasion and has lied about the head boy repeatedly. I have given her two detentions for the next two Saturdays and taken 100 points from Slytherin house. I think you may have to intervene."

"I will take care of it Miss Granger."

"Thank you Professor."

Snape nodded at her as she walked away. When she arrived back at the Gryffindor table she was greeted with a heavy silence.

"Now Harry, what I was trying to tell you was that Malfoy…I mean Draco and I have become friends. Spending the time we did working together we put aside our differences and have moved on. I hope that is not going to be a problem with you."

Draco looked at Hermione oddly. As if he didn't expect her to come right out with it to her friends. Especially Potter.

"It's okay with me Hermione." Harry said sheepishly. "I can't speak for the rest of Gryffindor, but I will try to talk to them all and at least have them respect your wishes."  
"That's all I ask." Hermione said grinning, before taking a bite of her scrambled eggs.

"Now then…" Harry said looking at Malfoy but talking to Hermione. "first class is Transfiguration today. And McGonagall is being extremely tough this year."

"I wasn't just sitting around doing nothing while I was away Harry, I've practiced."

"I'm sure you have." Harry said still looking at Draco in an odd way. Draco said practically nothing. He ate a sparse meal and got up without saying goodbye to any of them.

"That was rude." Ginny blurted out in an annoyed way.

Hermione stood up to follow him.

"What was that all about?" she asked him before he could climb the stairs.

"What?" he replied.

"I invite you to sit with us so you didn't have to endure your housemates and that is how you treat me?"

"Who asked you to intervene?"

Hermione's mouth hung open.

"Now everyone will say that I need you to fight my battles for me!" he shouted.

"But they were harassing you. How could I let that go on?"

"Easy, ignore it like I was doing. Just because you are in Gryffindor doesn't mean you always have to be the hero."

Hermione could feel the tears welling behind her brown eyes but held them back.

"Fine. Go be miserable. See if I care." And with that she stomped off towards the great hall again to join Harry and Ginny.

Draco watched her leave. He was so angry he could barely remain in control of it. Why had she done that? Didn't she know it made things so much worse for him? Then, like an anvil falling from the sky it hit him.

"She would have done the same for any of her friends." he said aloud to no one. "Draco Malfoy you are a bloody prat."

The school day passed quickly. Hermione was relieved to find out that she was not behind the other students at all, rather she was ahead. Not by as much as she would have liked but considering what she had been through it was enough for her. After dinner she took her time going back to her common room. She didn't know how she would face him again. She stuck out her neck for him. Asked the others to treat him like they would her. And he had the nerve to yell at her about it?

'He's so infuriating!' she thought as she walked along the corridor to their living quarters. When she got to the portrait and entered Draco was no where to be found. Relived, she tossed her bag onto the nearby armchair and sat in front of the roaring fire. While she was glad to be back at school she wasn't used to such a strenuous schedule. Waking up whenever she wanted, doing homework and potions at her leisure, swimming in the lagoon, watching Draco's smooth body swimming through the clear water…

"Snap out of it Hermione." she told herself. Those days were gone. And she would have to put them behind her.

Just then she heard someone upstairs. As she turned around, Draco was coming down the steps towards her. She turned her head away and stared at the fire intently.

"Hey." he said sitting next to her on the sofa. She ignored him and scooted away.

"You know, I did the same thing to you on the island and you finally wore me down. So why don't we skip all the childish dramatics and I will just say I'm sorry so we can get on with our lives?"

Hermione's head whipped around to stare at him.  
"Excuse me? Did I just hear Draco Malfoy say he was sorry?"

"You did."

"Can you repeat it? I don't know if I will ever hear those words again." she grinned.

"I'm sorry. I realize that you would have stuck up for any of your friends like you did for me. I wasn't thinking like that. I thought you were trying to make me look weak…"

"Why would I do that?" she asked. Her eyes fixed upon his grey ones.

"I don't know. I guess I've never had a true friend."

He reached out his hand and took hers inside of his.

"Thank you." he said sincerely.

"You are welcome." she smiled back. The fire was making patterns on his pale skin and hair. He didn't let go of her hand, but kept his eyes fixed on her. His finger reached up and curled her hair around it. He didn't speak, but waited a moment before his lips touched hers. He was gentle at first but then a wild streak of pure fire and hunger that had overtaken them once before took hold. He unbuttoned her school blouse deftly; it was as if it had never been on her to begin with. It was tossed onto the floor as he leaned over her, backing her onto the sofa. His t-shirt was the next to be removed, leaving them pressed together with only the fabric of her bra between their bare chests. Her breasts crushed against the tight muscle of his chest as his hand cupped her cheek. She felt as if she couldn't breathe. His hand teased down her neck, to her collarbone and finally rested upon her half bared breast. He kneaded her flesh in his hands causing her to gasp. Her head was spinning and this seemed like it was going way to fast for her.

"What does this mean Draco?" she asked as she tried to catch her breath.

"I don't know…" he murmured into her hair. "Why must you analyze everything?"

"It's my nature." she replied. "Is this what you want?" she asked him.

"It's what I want." he said. "Maybe it always has been."

His lips met hers again, more passionate this time, so hard she felt them bruising and bleeding into her mouth. And somehow it made the kiss seem even more erotic to her. She realized that all that had happened before had been a teaser of what was to come. His mouth trailed from hers down her neck, kissing her collarbone and finally pulling down the top half of her bra to take her sensitive pink nipple into his mouth. She gasped at the feeling of his warm breath on her chilled, bare skin. Closing her eyes, she inhaled deeply. The scent of his skin lingered in the air above her. He kissed lower, leaving paintbrush strokes with his tongue down her stomach until he reached the band of her skirt. His fingertips brushed just inside the waist, taking his time he unbuttoned it and slid it down her legs until it too was on the floor. Simple white panties lay across her lower body. He smirked at the sight. As if she would have worn any other color with her school uniform. He left small red marks on her lower stomach as his hands drew patterns on her hips, gripped her bum, held the small of her back in his grip. Her face was burning as she felt his eyes upon her nearly nude body. He had seen her in less, but it was always in a compromised circumstance. Not her, at Hogwarts, in their common room. It was unheard of. She felt the sheer fabric of her knickers leave her body at some point and put up no resistance. If this was what he wanted she was ready. But Draco made no attempt to take off his own remaining clothes, instead concentrating on kissing her inner thighs, softly nuzzling the damp hair with his lips. She felt his lips touch her and gasped loudly. His head shot up to look at her through her bent legs.

"Are you okay?" he asked quietly.

She grinned, blushed and then nodded at him. Not wanting him to stop, but afraid of what would happen if he continued. Without another word he continued kissing her, letting his tongue swirl around her pink skin. She felt that feeling buried deep inside her coming alive again. The warmth of his mouth, moving against her willing flesh created chaos in her mind. It grew more and more until finally it burst upon her with a wave of force causing her to claw against the fabric of the sofa. She cried out despite her resolve not to, not caring who might or might not hear her. Pleasure gripped her body but he allowed her to come down slowly, causing tremors in her like tiny aftershocks. She was overly aware of the moment she climaxed, a wave of liquid fire spread throughout her body causing her to lose every other awareness she possessed. She tried to regain control over her breathing. He crawled up to her and lay at her side. She felt the drumbeat of her heart slow once again. He kissed her softly, and she kissed back hungrily, wanting more of him. To know him, breathe him and feel him against her. She trailed her fingers down his chest. He swallowed deeply, keeping his eyes focused on her. She was not surprised to feel the bulge against her leg. Her fingers grazed it and he shuddered. She smiled at that. She brushed it again, a little harder this time. He closed his eyes and took another deep breath. She knew this was insane. And yet she wanted it, but how much of it she did not know. Her lips drew close to his ear.

"I don't think I can go all the way…" she whispered. "how can I make you feel the way I just did?"

He took her hand inside of his own and placed it on his erection. He growled low in his throat as she touched him gently. Seeing his reaction she touched him a little more daringly. Trembling, her hands unfastened his trouser button and they came down enough for her to continue. He wore grey cotton boxers. They were soft to the touch. She buried her lips into the crook of his neck and kissed him delicately as her hand stroked him through the fabric of his boxers. The more she touched him, the more he ground his hips against her hand. After a few moments she lifted the elastic band of his underwear and slid her shaking hand inside. It was warm and hard, but the skin was soft. Her fingertips rubbed along the shaft, gently going up and down The blond hair covering the surrounding area felt baby fine between her fingers. Hermione concentrated on the look on Draco's face as she touched him. She wondered if her face had looked so happy and content just a few minutes ago. She took the full of him into her hand and stroked in rhythm to her own beating heart. She could hear little else above that. Draco's body trembled slightly before a large amount of hot liquid poured over her hand and into his boxers. She felt slightly disgusted, but also aroused at this. He grabbed his wand and whispered "Scourgify." and the mess was gone instantly. Hermione laid her head on his chest and listened to his heart regain its regular beat.

"I hope that was alright." she whispered, nervous that he was so quiet.

"Hermione, it was bloody brilliant."

She smiled and fell asleep on his chest, hoping that every day would end with this feeling of happiness and contentment.


	18. How to have a snowball fight

**A/N I am so sorry everyone that it has taken me so long to update. Major drama going on here! We thought we were going to lose our son (they want to give him back to his birth mom) but we got a six month extention so I was happy about that. Plus our daughter Lily has been a handful. And on top of that we are remodeling the kitchen in our new house so I havn't had a spare moment to do anything, let alone write. But I had some free time tonight so I hope you like it. It's not as long as usual but I hope you like it anyway. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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How to have a snowball fight

It was cold. The fire had gone out in the middle of the night leaving two half-naked teenagers huddled together on the sofa of their common room. Draco was first to wake, smelling the strong scent of Hermione's shampooed hair spread across his bare chest. He felt groggy as the sun streaked into one of the many high windows and into his eyes. He shifted his body and Hermione woke up with a start.

"Morning." he said with a half smile.

"Morning." she replied. She hurried to find something to cover her nakedness with. Draco handed her his t-shirt and she put it on quickly.

"Oh my gods! Look what time it is, we are late for classes." she said rushing around picking up her discarded items of clothing.

"Relax. We have potions first. Professor Snape won't mind." he said stretching.

"I mind." she huffed.

"Let's get some breakfast and then head off to class." he said smiling. Hermione ran up the stairs, threw on her school uniform, pulled her hair into a messy ponytail and then ran back down to meet Draco, who to her surprise was already dressed and waiting.

"Magic remember?" he smirked. She slapped him in the arm. They went down to breakfast together and sat at the end of the Gryffindor table. Most of the school had already eaten and just a few stragglers were left. Unfortunately Blaise and Pansy were among them.

"Finally get out of bed you two?" she taunted.

"Just ignore her." Draco said clenching his jaw tightly.

Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Must be nice to shack up in the same room and come to class whenever you please." Blaise hissed.

Hermione couldn't bite her tongue anymore.

"You must really love Pansy since you will be spending the next two Saturdays in detention with her Zabini." she shouted back.

Pansy made a rude gesture but walked away quickly when a teacher approached.

"You know, Dumbledore sent us off to learn to get along and all we've done since we've returned is fight with other students. It's getting really old."

Draco nodded and ate hurriedly. Hermione pushed her food around but didn't eat much.

"Ready?" she asked as she picked up her books and headed for the door. They ran down the steps towards the dungeons and arrived just in time to hear the homework assignment from Snape.

"Mr. Malfoy. Miss Granger. I assume you have a reasonable explanation for being late."

"We do sir." Draco spoke up. "We caught some rule violators and wrote out a report. Then a first year was hurt so we took him to the hospital wing."

Snape looked suspicious but said nothing else.

"Make sure you reread chapter 9 and follow the brewing instructions carefully. Sample vials can be turned in next week."

He waved his wand and the chalkboard filled with writing. Students quickly copied the text and then ran off towards their next class.

"Stay back you two." Snape motioned to Draco and Hermione. Hermione's posture sagged.

Ron barely looked at Hermione and Harry gave them a 'better you than me' look before leaving.

"What is it Professor?"

"That cockamamie story about rule violations and injured first years."

"Uh, Professor?"

"Don't be late again. I will let it go this time. Now get to your next class."

Hermione had the distinct impression that Snape was probing around in her mind. Draco of course could block Snape, but Hermione had never learned that particular skill.

They both hurried out of class, relived that they had not gotten in any trouble.

"That was close." Draco said.

"I think Snape was trying to see why we were really late."

"I got that impression too." he replied.

She avoided looking him in the eyes, hoping she had not let Snape see anything roaming about her brain.

"Well this day was kind of a waste." he said. No other classes for me the rest of the day.

"Me either." she said sadly.

"What should we do?"

"Well, I should go see Harry and Ron."

"Oh yeah. Sure, you should."

"You can come as well." she added.

"No thank you."

"Come on." she prodded him in the arm.

"I think I'll just take a walk."

"It's freezing outside."

"I'll be fine. See you later." he said walking away.

"Bye." Hermione replied heading for the Gryffindor tower.

The walk was long and lonely. She climbed the steps slowly and reached the portrait of the fat lady.

"Good morning Miss Granger." The fat lady said.

"Good morning. Are Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley inside?"

"Indeed they are."

"Good. Gurdyroot." Hermione replied. The portrait swung open. Hermione entered the common room and found Ron and Harry playing wizard's chess.

"Hi Hermione." Harry said not looking up at her. Ron nodded and kept his concentration.

"No more classes today for either of you as well?"

They both shook their heads no.

"Want to do something?" she asked.

"We are." Ron added. "Playing chess in case you haven't noticed."

"What's got your wand in a knot?" she asked defensively.

"Come off it Hermione. You and Malfoy are awfully cozy these days."

"These days? Ron we have been back at school for all of two days. We are friends. That's all. He's paid a heavy price for his past actions. Let it go Ron. You are an adult now, can't you act like one?"

"If it means accepting Malfoy as a chum then no."

"Harry's alright with it." Hermione added.

"Don't bring me into this." Harry said quickly.

"Harry is not alright with this. Are you?"

"All I said was that I would treat him the same way I would treat any head boy. I'm not going to pick out china with him or anything."

"I swear to Merlin I don't understand the male species." she said throwing her hands into the air. "Why can't by gones be by gones?"

"Because they can't." Ron said.

Harry didn't look at either of them. He was used to the constant bickering between them.

"Harry would you like to go do something?"

"I've promised Ginny we would study together." he said uncomfortably dodging looks from Ron.

"Oh, alright then." she said heading for the door.

"Don't be mad Hermione." Harry called back. She held up her hand and waved him off before leaving through the portrait. Suddenly she wished she had more friends. She walked briskly back to the head's common room. Once inside she realized that Draco wasn't there either. She grabbed her coat, hat and scarf and headed for the school grounds. A fresh layer of snow covered the icy ground. Very few were outside. Smoke billowed from Hagrid's chimney. The lake was a solid sheet of ice. And it took a while for her to seek out Draco on the vast grounds. He was sitting on a snow covered rock staring at the lake. She grinned. Taking this rare opportunity she scooped up a large handful of snow and formed it into a perfectly round icy snow ball. Rather than throwing it, a skill she had not acquired, she used her wand to float it towards him and with a flick smash it into the side of his shoulder. He came out of his deep thought to see who the culprit was. Hermione ducked behind a tree.

"Whoever that was…" he started as he climbed off the rock "will be serving detention for the rest of the school year."

Hermione snickered. Draco reached down and picked up a heap of snow forming it into an oddly shaped ball. He tossed it into the air and caught it again, looking around for his target. Hermione scooped up another snow ball.

"You might as well give yourself up." he said aloud. "There's no where to hide."

Hermione made a sudden movement and Draco spun around and threw the snowball at her. It struck her directly in the chest. She fell dramatically, clutching her chest and making fake dying noises.

"Hermione?" he said surprised.

"You got me…" she said gasping. "I am obviously no match for your talent and cunning."

He ran over to her and helped her out of the snow.

"I didn't know it was you. I thought you were hanging out with…"

"They were busy." she replied not going into detail.

"Oh."

"Besides, I would never miss this…" she said before shoving the snowball clutched in her hand down the back of Draco's shirt and coat. He shook his clothes to rid himself of the icy intrusion.

"You will pay for that." he said picking up another snowball and lobbing it at her, missing by only a foot. Hermione ran as fast as she could through the snow and hiding behind the rock that Draco was previously sitting on.

"You can run but you can't hide." he called in a sing-song voice.

She stood up quickly and tossed another snowball at him, it hit him squarely in the chest. His reflexes caused him to throw the one in his hand at her. It smacked her on the side of the head.

"Ha!" he called out laughing at her picking snow out of her hair.

"That was luck." she said scooping more snow and forming it into a quick ball. But she was too slow. He had already made 3 balls and was throwing them in quick succession at her. She barely had time to throw the one she had made when he was making more.

"Give it up Granger." he called throwing more snowballs in her direction. "You can't win this." He laughed for the first time in ages. She smiled at him and threw another snowball.

"I will never surrender!" she called back.

"Fine. Then I will have to overthrow you!" he shouted running at her and throwing snowballs the whole time. She tried to get up but tripped on a heap of snow and landed face first in the cold snow. Quick as a flash he was kneeling over her shoving snow down the back of her coat. She squealed loudly before turning over to face him. His face was light with laughter and his pale face red from the cold. Snow covered her hair and face. She was laughing so hard her stomach hurt.

"Ok, ok. I give up." she said holding her hands up and showing him that she was unarmed.

"I knew you would surrender." he said lying next to her and propping himself up on one arm. He smiled at her.

"I love it when you smile." she said swallowing nervously. She realized what a compromising position she was suddenly in.

He thought her pink cheeks and nose were very endearing. And without thinking he leaned in and placed a soft kiss on the end of her nose. Her breath caught in her throat. She reached up and drew him back in. His lips were cold, but warm at the same time. The quietness of the setting made the beating of their hearts even louder. He kissed her more deeply slipping his tongue between her lips. Her mouth accepted it willingly and he took the chance of lying on top of her, feeling the warmth emitting from her body against his own. Hermione's tongue played softly with his inside her mouth. She felt his hand run along the course of her chest, over her bulky coat and then inside of it and under her shirt. It was cold on her warm skin causing her nipple to harden instantly.

Finally he broke from her mouth and they gasped for air, watching the swirls of breath disappear in the cold air.

"We should really stop meeting like this." she grinned. He leaned over her again and kissed her softly on the lips.

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Click


	19. How to screw things up

**A/N Hello everyone! I hope you are all well. Things here are crazy...our house is being remodeled and the people doing it are complete idiots. We've had nothing but trouble since they started. Anyway this story should be winding down soon. I don't know how much longer it will be. But I'm working on more so keep on the lookout for more. I do have a Blaise/Hermione oneshot I'm almost done with if anyone is interested. Happy Reading and don't forget to review!

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How to screw things up

"What was that?" Hermione said lifting her head and looking around quickly.

"I didn't hear anything." Draco replied keeping his eyes on her. He didn't really know or care what had come over him.

"We should get back in." she said standing up and brushing the snow off of her coat.

"Yeah. What do you have planned the rest of the day?" he asked her.

"Nothing. Maybe we should work on that potion Snape set us."

"We have loads of time for that." Draco replied.

"Yeah, true." she said helping him up out of the snow.

"We could hang out in the common room and stuff our faces with food." she suggested.

He shrugged his shoulders in a non-committal sort of way.

"Well we can think of something when we get back to our room." she said taking a hold of his freezing hand.

They walked quickly up to the castle and headed for their common room. After shedding their wet clothes they sat in front of the fire and talked for the rest of the day. All in all it was one of the best days of Hermione's life.

The next day broke early with a bright ray of sunlight waking Hermione up. Only two classes that day and neither one of them were early ones. She got out of bed and showered slowly. She got dressed leisurely and headed down the staircase towards the shared common room. Draco was still sleeping she assumed and after waiting for a while she decided to head to breakfast on her own. It was odd walking down the halls. She felt as if people were staring at her. Some were snickering as well. She felt her skirt, making sure it was not tucked into her knickers or something. All was fine on that end. The closer she got to the great hall the louder the whispering had become. When she got to the great hall and opened the large oak doors the talking suddenly stopped. The silence was alarming. Every pair in the hall was looking at her. Even the teachers were looking in her direction. She kept her head high and walked towards the Gryffindor table. Harry and Ginny looked very sympathetic. Ron and the other Gryffindors looked disgusted.

"What is going on?" she whispered to Ginny.

"You don't know?" Ginny replied, somewhat shocked.

"No. But frankly it's freaking me out."

Ginny reached under her pile of books and pulled out a picture.

"These were plastered all over the halls and on every seat in the great hall this morning." Ginny told her. Hermione picked up the photo and looked at it. Her jaw dropped. The picture was of her and Draco out in the snow the day before. Draco was on top of her planting a kiss on her lips.

"I knew I heard something." she scowled, now realizing it was a camera. "If that was Colin I swear I will kill him." Hermione said.

"I'm pretty sure it wasn't Colin." Ginny said pointing at the Slytherin table. Pansy, Blaise, Crabbe and Goyle were doubled over in laughter. Pansy was mimicking taking pictures.

"That is the final straw!" Hermione said slamming her fist into the table. "I'm going to the headmaster."

"Wait Hermione, where is Malfoy?" Ginny said.

"Oh my gods, he doesn't know yet. Harry? Can I ask a favor of you?"

"I guess." Harry said catching Ginny's eye.

"Go to my common room and make sure Draco doesn't leave the room."

Harry looked to Ginny again. She nodded.

"Oh alright." he said standing up and heading for the door. Ron glared at him.

"Ron, I don't have time to deal with your attitude right now." Hermione huffed. She picked up the picture and headed for the teacher's table. Several of them looked stunned that a student would approach them.

"Professor Dumbledore, could I have a word with you?" she said. He nodded kindly and led her to a small room off the great hall, shutting the door behind him.

"What can I do for you Miss Granger?" he asked.

"This." she said handing him the picture.

"Yes, yes. I have seen it. It was placed under my plate at breakfast this morning. It's a very nice picture of you and Mr. Malfoy." he said with his eyes twinkling over his half-moon glasses.

"It's a disaster!" she shouted. "You sent us off to get along, and now that we are no one is very happy about it."

"I wouldn't say that." he smiled.

"Seriously Professor!" she said frustrated.

"I'm sorry Miss Granger, I don't mean to make light of your suffering."

"I don't know what to do." she cried.

"What exactly is the problem Miss Granger? Are you ashamed of being friends with Mr. Malfoy?"

"No." she said, realizing it was not entirely truthful.

"Then I don't understand I'm afraid."

"Well, we are starting to be a bit more than friends." she said, her face flushing.

"There is nothing wrong with that." Dumbledore said.

"Other people think there is. Like Pansy Parkinson and Blaise Zabini. They have been downright cruel to Draco since our return. They've both been sentenced to detention for the next few weeks."

"What about your friends Miss Granger?"

"Well, Ginny Weasley knows. Harry only knows that we are friends, or he did until today. Ron, well Ron's going to be the problem." she replied thinking of his harsh glower.

"Well I can't tell you what to do, but talk to them and explain the situation. If they are your real friends they will understand."

Hermione looked unsure.

"And you might want to talk to Mr. Malfoy as well. But things will work out in the end. Bonds of friendship can overcome a lot." he told her, touching her shoulder gently and leading her out of the room. The great hall had less people in it than when she had gone into talk with Dumbledore. Ron and Ginny were still sitting at the table and Harry was just returning.

"Did you do it?" Hermione asked Harry.

"Yeah, and it wasn't easy. I told him that tons of stink pellets went off in the hallway. And if he didn't want to smell like skunk he would stay inside the common room."

"Good. Any classes this morning?"

Ron and Harry shook their heads no. Ginny had to run off to Transfiguration.

"I need to talk to the both of you."

Ron avoided her look.

"This picture…its misleading." she explained shakily. "We were having a snowball fight and things got out of control."

"Hermione…" Harry started. He had that 'don't ask, don't tell' look in his eyes.

"No, I need to tell you. We are not dating or anything, but we are close. This picture, this kiss…it meant nothing."

"Nothing?" a voice from behind her asked.

Hermione dropped her head and turned around. Draco was standing right behind her. He looked less than pleased.

"Draco really, did you see the pictures Pansy took? I knew I heard something click yesterday outside."

"So it meant nothing. Well that puts everything into perspective. Nothing…"

"Honestly, you can't tell me you have feelings for me, real feelings. It's ridiculous."

Draco's face fell.

"No, I can't tell you that now." he said before walking away.

Hermione's mouth hung open.

"Bad news all around today huh Hermione." Ron said angrily before storming off as well. Harry gave her a 'what can I do?' look and left after him. People left in the hall were all staring at her. She felt her cheeks flush hot and fat salty tears welling in her eyes. She took a deep breath and walked calmly out of the great hall, but when got to the stairs she ran.

Draco had locked himself in his room and avoided everyone that day. He even skipped classes to avoid more uncomfortable stares. Hermione braved the classes and returned much later to her room. Draco was no where to be found. Quietly she tiptoed up to his bedroom door and knocked.

"Draco?" she said softly. There was no reply. She knocked again, a little more forcefully.

"Draco, I know you are in there." she said a bit louder. By the end she was pounding until her fists hurt. He never answered.

"Fine!" she screamed. "Just fine! Don't talk to me! Everyone already hates me, you might as well too!"

She covered her face and ran to her room crying loudly.

'Why do these things always happen to me?' she thought as she took deep breaths to calm herself down. Crookshanks jumped up on the bed and lay across her chest. She petted him on the head and he purred until they both fell asleep.

Meanwhile in Draco's room he had never heard Hermione screaming at his door. A simple silencing charm had made his bedroom a sanctuary. He had showered, put on some comfortable clothes and laid in bed all day reading. The reading is what really calmed him down. He was so angry at her for what she had said to her friends. He understood why she had done it. She wasn't ready to talk about 'them'. He wasn't either; it was just hearing that he had meant nothing to her that got his blood boiling. He decided he would probably forgive her. Maybe make her sweat it out a little bit. First he wanted to kill whoever took that picture. He figured it was Pansy or Blaise. He would plot his revenge later. Sometime later that evening his eagle owl was tapping on the window. He untied a note from his mother and read it.

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Dearest Draco,

I was glad to hear that you finally are back at school after that 'project'. How are things back at school? Keeping your grades up I hope. How is Miss Granger? She was so lovely at Christmas time I hope you are treating her alright. The elves got everything moved into the new house. I had to give most of them clothing. This place just wasn't big enough for all of them. Dumbledore said they could come and work at Hogwarts if they wished. I hope you plan on coming home for the Easter holidays. Please bring Miss Granger if she wants. I miss you very much. I love you son.

Mum

He read the letter several times before putting it in the top drawer of his desk. He hated the thought of going back to his new 'home' at Easter. The thought of Hermione coming cheered him up, but he didn't know if she was going to be willing to go after today. He would have to talk to her about it. He looked at his watch and his stomach grumbled. He hadn't eaten all day, but he refused to risk going out until he talked to Hermione. And he wasn't going to do that until morning.

"Damn." he swore aloud before lying down and trying to fall asleep.

The next morning Draco was in a very bad mood due to his extreme hunger. He got dressed quickly. They had potions class early that morning so he knew Hermione would be down any moment. He heard her door open. Hermione's eyes looked a bit red and puffy.

"Good morning." he said. She didn't reply.

"I said good morning."

She shot a look that could kill at him.

"About yesterday…I think I overreacted."

"Oh are you finally speaking to me?" she said with mock surprise. "Don't I feel special?"

"What do you mean?" he replied.

"I tried to talk to you last night and you blew me off, so I guess we're even now huh?" she screamed.

"When?"

"Last night. I banged on your door."

"Silencing charm." he said remembering.

"Oh…" she said, her voice trailing off.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" he asked.

"I wanted to tell you that I didn't mean it like it sounded. I was just cushioning the blow for Ron and Harry…well mostly Ron."

He looked at her and wanted to kiss her again.

"I know that. I overreacted anyway. I don't want to fight with you anymore." he said walking to her and taking her hands in his own. You are my only friend and I don't know what I would do without you." He lowered his lips to hers and placed a gentle kiss there.

She looked up at him and gave a crooked smile.

"I heard from my mum last night." he told her.

"She is such a lovely woman." Hermione told him. "How is she doing?"

"Moved into the new place, wants me to come home for Easter and bring you with me." he said offhandedly.

"Really?" she said. She surprised to hear that. His mum had been very nice to her at Christmas but an invite home was something else.

"Would you be willing to go?"

"I think so. I'd have to ask my mum and dad first but I don't think they would mind."

"Great." he smiled.

"But we still have a problem." she said.

"What?"

"What do we do about us? Everyone is talking about those pictures. It's not just going to go away." she said biting her lower lip nervously.

"Let's just let people think what they want." he said grabbing her hand and leading her out into the hallway for the whole school to see.


	20. How to answer for your actions

**A/N Hello. I am so sorry for not updating for like forever. Well the reason is that we have a new baby girl. Grace Ann was born on July 10. She has not been very healthy so I've been taking care of her 24/7. She was even in the hospital for a couple of days. So that's my reason. I had this chapter mostly written so I've just been too busy to finish it. If you want to see a pic of the new baby and some new pics of my other kid go to my myspace page. The link is on my profile. I'm sorry this chapter is a bit short also. Happy reading and please review so I have something to look forward to!!

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How to answer for your actions

Hermione walked down the fifth floor hallway hand in hand with Draco. Mouths dropped, people stopped dead in their tracks. Hermione fidgeted nervously but never loosened her grip on Draco's hand.

"Relax." he told her out of the corner of his mouth.

"I'm trying." she replied, smiling nervously.

She could hear the loud, less than inconspicuous whispers of her classmates

__

'What are they playing at?'

'Are they together now or what?'

She heard Lavender Brown say

__

'I knew that hate thing was all an act! I told you so Pavarti!"

She giggled at that thinking of what Ginny had written her. She looked Lavender in the eyes and smiled her biggest smile. Why shouldn't she? She was with one of the best looking guys in the school. And she deserved a bit of happiness. They headed down the staircase towards the great hall. More and more people stopped and looked at them. Breakfast was just beginning. Harry, Ginny and Ron were just taking their seats. Ginny looked up as they entered the hall and nudged Harry, whispering something in his ear. She smiled brightly at Hermione. Ron looked to see what they were staring at and turned bright red.

"What's all this?" he asked marching over to Draco and Hermione. His fist balled up in anger.

"Ron, look…" Hermione started. But it was too late. Ron threw a sucker punch at Draco, nailing him right in the jaw. Harry ran over and pulled Ron off of Draco just before he hit him again. Draco held his jaw with his free hand, wiping a trickle of blood from his lip.

"Ronald Weasley!" Hermione shouted letting go of Draco's hand and heading for where Harry was restraining Ron. Ginny put her arm around Hermione's shoulder.

"I think you had better tell the both of them the truth." Ginny said. "About you and Malfoy and where you really were."

Hermione nodded.

"I know I owe you an explanation. Both of you. Truth is Draco and I were not in Muggle London. We were stranded on a deserted island to help us learn to work together. We became friends. We learned to work together. And well, we are more than friends now. We are…" she hesitated, and looked at Draco. She couldn't think of the words for what they were.

"She's my girlfriend…" then he stopped. "Well she is if she wants to be." he said squeezing her hand and looking her in the eye. Hermione's mouth trembled a bit. She nodded.

Harry looked at the pair suspiciously. Ron said nothing.

"Look Ron, I think you need to let by gones be by gones." Ginny said.

"Has everyone in this room gone completely mental? This is MALFOY! I feel like I'm the only sane one left? What's next? Voldemort going to pop out of my birthday cake and sing? Snape going to give us all high marks on the last potion assignment?"

Ginny snickered at him.

"If I may…" Draco started. Ron shot him the most evil look he could muster which Draco ignored. "From what Hermione has told me you two are like her brothers. Neither of you were romantically interested in her right?"

Harry shook his head. Ron didn't move, but his jaw was clenched tightly as if trying not to answer.

"If you care for her let her be happy." Ginny said to Ron. She placed her small hand on his shoulder. "She's bright enough to make decisions for herself."

"Thanks Ginny." Hermione said still looking at Ron waiting for him to blow. He didn't. He sat there staring at the wall behind Hermione and Draco.

"Ron please…" Hermione started. She stood next to him pleading with her brown eyes.

"Not now." he replied before walking away and dragging Draco along with him.

"Get off me." Draco said straightening his collar but following Ron anyway.

They reached the doors leading out to the courtyard. Ron gave them a yank and walked outside. When they were both outside Ron turned to Draco.

"Well?"

"Well what?" Draco said somewhat confused.

"Let's get on with it."

"Weasley, could you please make some sense. I have other things to do today." Draco said smirking.

"Like what, Hermione?" Ron shouted.

"Let's not be vulgar."

"Why not? It's what this is all about isn't it?"  
"You seem to be the authority Weasley. Why don't you tell me what it's all about?"

"You are using her aren't you?"

Draco folded his arms across his chest. He wanted to hit Ron in the worst way, but he knew that Hermione would probably frown on that particular action.

Ron's face mellowed. He looked down at the ground and kicked a stone.

"Do you love her?"

Draco was surprised to hear that from him.

"Did you hear me Malfoy?"

"I heard you."

"And?"

"I can't answer that."

"Because you are using her."

"No, because I don't know."

"How could you not know?"

"We've only just gotten together. Love is a big deal. I do care for her though."

Ron considered this for a moment.

"You are not just jerking her around then?"

"Of course not."

"Have you and Hermione…you know?" Ron asked still looking at the ground.

"I don't think its any of your business. But if you must know the answer is no."

Ron breathed a sigh of relief.

"Then I just don't understand it." he said throwing his hands in the air.

"She makes me happy. And I can't say that about many people Weasley."

"I still don't trust you."

"Understood."

Ron gave a nod and headed back to the school. Draco rubbed his hands together to warm them before following him in. Hermione was anxiously waiting in the entrance.

"What was that about?" she asked watching Ron pass her without a word and head up the stairs.

"We just had a chat. He wanted to make sure I'm not using you."

Hermione tried to be mad at Ron but she couldn't. She knew he was just looking out for her in his own irrational, hot-headed way.

"Well what did you tell him?" she asked Draco as they sat back down in the great hall to eat breakfast.

"About what?"

"Whether or not you were using me." she said sprinkling sugar on her cereal.

"I told him I absolutely was." he grinned wickedly.

Hermione's mouth fell open.

"Why would you…" she started to rant.

"I'm kidding. Of course I told him I wasn't."

Hermione took in a deep breath.

"He also asked me if I loved you." Draco said a bit more quietly.

Hermione swallowed hard.

"Really?" she said trying to keep her cool.

"Yes."

"And?"

"And what?"

"And what did you tell him?"

"It's private."

"It's…what?"

"If you want to know you will have to ask him."

"He's not going to want to talk to me right now."

"You won't know unless you try."

"Did he seem really mad?"

"No more than usual. Go on. I'll catch up with you later."

Hermione leaned over and kissed him on the forehead. Several people gasped.

"Later then."

She left the great hall and headed up to the Gryffindor tower to find Ron. Her heart beat harder with each step she took. Ron's temper had always been something she tiptoed around. She gave the fat lady the new password, (Ice mice) and entered the nearly empty common room.

"Ron?" she called out. He was sitting in front of the dwindling fire. He didn't answer. She went and sat next to him on the oversized chair.

"You okay?" she asked.

He nodded.

"I didn't mean for this to happen. It just kind of did."

He nodded again.

"He's not that bad really. I mean he can be…but it's nothing I can't handle."

Ron sat staring at the fire.

"I didn't mean to hurt you."

"You could have told me sooner." Ron finally said.

"I wanted to. But things kept happening to keep me from doing it. Plus I was scared of your reaction."

Ron's eyes widened.

"You were scared of me?"

"Not exactly of you, but you know how your temper can be."

"I never meant for you to be scared of my temper or me." he said sheepishly.

She put her head on his shoulder.

"Are you still mad?"

He shrugged his shoulders.

"Are you sure about this Hermione?"

She thought for a moment.

"I think so."

"Then I'm not mad. Shocked…yes. Disappointed…probably. But not mad."

Hermione threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you…thank you so much!" she said.

"Don't let him hurt you 'Mione. And if he does don't stop me from cursing him into oblivion."

"I won't. I promise. See you later then?"

Ron nodded. She planted a kiss on his forehead and ran out the door.

She felt happier than she had in months. Everyone knew about her secret and everyone was still talking to her. She knew Lavender and Pavarti were extremely jealous that she was with Draco. Just the look on their faces made her skip all the way to her quarters. She entered and expected to find Draco sitting on the sofa reading or making a snack in the kitchenette, but he was no where to be seen. She shrugged her shoulders and headed upstairs for a long soak in the tub. She gathered her bath things and headed through the adjoining bath door. Soft candlelight filled the room. That was not unusual, but the dozens of white roses covering every available countertop were. A foamy, highly scented bath had already been drawn.

"Draco?" she called out. There was no answer. A small card lay near the sink. Hermione picked it up and read it;

__

Thank you.

DM

She smiled. Who knew Draco Malfoy could be so considerate? She undressed and slid into the warm bath. The scent of jasmine and vanilla filled her nostrils and the perfectly heated water enveloped her. She laid her head on the back of the tub and closed her eyes. Sleep took over and she had slipped into a light nap before hearing someone at the door.

"Who is it?" she asked before mentally scolding herself. Who else could it be? Only she and Draco had the current password.

"It's me." came the familiar voice.

She smiled.

"Come in."

The door opened and Draco came in. He was wearing a plain white t-shirt and flannel pajama bottoms.

"Hey."

"Hey." she replied.

The softly flickering candles danced on his pale hair and skin.

"How did it go with Weasley?"

"Fine. He's not thrilled or anything but he will get over it."

"Good."

"Sit down." she said with a lump in her throat.

He sat on the edge of the large tub and dipped his bare feet into the water.

"I take it you are enjoying your bath?" he smiled.

"It's just what I needed." she said.

He smiled and clasped his hands in his lap. Several moments of awkward silence passed. Hermione felt butterflies in her stomach. She was naked and vulnerable, and he was looking so intensely hot sitting there watching her.

"Draco?"

"Hmmm?"

"Join me?"


	21. How to end the night

**A/N Hello everyone! I am so, so, so, so sorry for the long time in between updates. Things have been hectic here. Our newborn daughter has been sick and there's a good chance that we are going to lose our son Joshua. The courts are probably going to give him back to his birth mom even though she can't care for him. So I have been spending a lot of time with the kids. This story is going to be coming to a close soon as well, but I have another one in the works. It's called '19 years later'. It's going to be a canon story of what happened after the epilouge to Deathly Hallows. And yes it is a dramione story. You will just have to see how I work it in. I think its pretty good. I am going to try to finish it though before I post the first chapter, that way updates will be regular and not so erratic. Well I hope you like this chapter. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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How to end the night

Draco just looked at her. His mind and heart were racing. He didn't answer her and now she was starting to look uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry…I shouldn't have said…" she started to say. Draco leaned in and kissed her softly. She responded by wrapping her arms around the back of his neck, nearly pulling him in the tub fully clothed.

"Whoa…" he said laughing into her mouth. She tried to pull him in but he resisted.

"What's wrong?" she whispered.

"Nothing is wrong, as a matter of fact things have never been more right." he said looking deeply into her eyes. The flicker of the candles danced on her pupils as she stood there naked and vulnerable.

"Then why…" she started, but he silenced her by kissing her again.

He took a deep breath.

"I have something to confess."

"What?" she asked pulling back slightly. When someone says that to you it's never a good thing.

"You know all those things people used to say about me?"  
"That you are a jerk, a prat, an utter and complete arse?"" she joked.

"Well, no. Not what I was thinking. I meant…wait a minute, did people really used to say those things about me?"

Hermione nodded.

"Crap. Anyway I was thinking more along the lines of Slytherin sex god, Prince of the bedroom, things like that."

"I've never heard any of that." she said smirking.

His mouth fell open.

"What? I thought that was common knowledge among the students. It is in my house. Or was anyway." He felt slightly disillusioned.

"What does that have to do with this?" she asked. The mood was leaving her mind fast.

"Well, all those rumors were just that. Rumors. Pansy started them."

Hermione cocked her head slightly and looked at him.

"I don't understand." she replied.

"The truth is…"

He couldn't say it. It was too embarrassing. His reputation would be ruined.

"The truth is what?" Hermione asked.

He bit his tongue.

"The truth is I'm…I'm, oh holy crap. I'm a virgin."

There he said it. It was out for her to laugh at and judge. He waited for her reply.

She looked at him; he looked like he was going to be sick at the thought.

"What? Just say it." he said waiting and looking at her intensely.

She didn't say anything. She simply stood on the bench part on the inside of the tub and positioned herself between his legs. Suds and water were soaking his clothing but he didn't care. She was naked and soapy and smelled oh so good. She reached up with her head and kissed him hard again on the mouth. The scent of her bubble bath filled his nostrils. He kissed her back and ran his hand along her soapy back. She attempted to pull him in again and he still resisted.

"Did you even hear what I said Hermione?"

She nodded.

"And?"

"And what?" she finally said. "Am I supposed to be disappointed about this? Because I'm not. I think that was the sexiest thing you could have said to me."

"How could you possibly think that was sexy?" he asked, quite confused.

Hermione bit her lip and thought for a moment. Finally after not being able to answer she just shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't know, it just is."

He took a deep breath. He had never been so open with anyone. It felt good to be honest with someone for the first time in his life.  
"So?" she asked sinking back into the tub and swimming to the other side. She looked so lovely and it was very tempting.

"I…I can't." he stuttered out. "I don't want you to think that I set this whole thing up to seduce you or something. Come find me when your bath is done." he said standing up. He had an idea and barely enough time to execute it.

"I don't think that…" she said starting to argue, but it was no use. He had stood up and left the room, leaving her alone in the tub. She sank down and wondered if something was wrong with her. Just then he popped his head back in.

"Put on something nice." he said grinning before rushing off again.

Hermione realized that Draco had something up his sleeve. She dunked her head underwater and began to wash her hair with the Sleekeasy shampoo to try and control her curls. She took her time and wondered how this night would end.

Meanwhile Draco hurried around the common room. It was snowing softly outside the balcony window; he placed a warming charm on the balcony and opened the double French doors to expose the common room to the soft glow of moonlight. He called for a house elf to bring some pumpkin juice, cakes and a light supper of the elves choosing. The small elf bowed deeply before popping away and returning moments later with the requested things.

"Thank you." Draco said sincerely. The elf nearly fell over with pride. She tripped on the rug as she bowed deeply before leaving.

He ran upstairs and changed into an all white button up shirt and white dress pants. The paleness of his skin and the clothing reflecting the moonlight caused him to almost glow. He sprayed himself with expensive cologne.

Hermione hurried herself in the bathroom. She pulled her hair up into an elegant knot and secured it with a rhinestone barrette. She rushed out of the bathroom to continue getting ready in her adjoining bedroom. White silk panties went on first, followed by a matching bra. She threw clothes around in her wardrobe and shouted in frustration.

"Ahh….I have nothing to wear!" she said as she threw several sweaters on the floor of her room. She hadn't purchased any new dress robes in ages. As a matter of fact the only really dressy outfit in her closet was the dress robes she wore to the Yule ball in her fourth year, and she doubted they fit her anymore. She grabbed the robes off of the hanger and held them up in front of her. She felt so wonderful in these robes on that long ago night. She pulled the periwinkle blue robes on over her head and smoothed them down. They still fit. She stood in front of the full length mirror.

"Not bad." she said smiling to herself. She ran to her make up bag and applied just a bit of a sparkling silver eyeshadow and pink lip gloss. She took a deep breath, and thought for a brief moment that she would feel quite foolish if she had misunderstood his request. She opened the door of her room that lead to the common room area. The corners of the room were dark but moonlight was streaming in from the balcony. It illuminated every surface it touched. And to her surprise and delight that included Draco Malfoy. He stood on the balcony facing away from her dressed in all white and quite effectively taking her breath away.

"Hello." he said turning around and holding a white rose in his grasp. "Did you enjoy your bath?"

"Very much, thank you." she replied walking over to him. Even though the snow was falling quite heavily the balcony felt warm and cozy. "You look nice." she added.

"You…you look…" he said looking her up and down. "Isn't that your Yule ball dress?" he asked.

Hermione felt shocked.

"Yes, how did you know?"

"I will never forget how you looked in that dress." he told her. "You were the most beautiful girl there."

"Who are you and what have you done with the real Draco Malfoy?" she joked.

"No really. I mean it."

"You never said…"

"I couldn't. You know I couldn't. But I noticed. I've never told anyone about it though." he reached out and took her hand in his own. "And if I had told you back then what would you have done?"

Hermione bit her lip.

"I don't know. I probably would have checked to see if you really were Draco Malfoy and not someone using Polyjuice potion."

"Always the thinker." he said.

"Even if I could have said something you were with that dunderhead Krum."

"Ahh, you and Ron finally have something in common." she said.  
"What's that?"

"You both had the wrong impression of Viktor."

"Viktor? Oh Merlin." he said shaking his head in light laughter. "Are you hungry?" he asked quickly changing the subject.  
"Yes."

"I had dinner brought up to us." he said leading her to a small table in the moonlit area of the room. He waved his wand and hundreds of candles flickered to life around the room.

"Everything looks lovely." she said as he pulled a chair out for her.

"Well I can't take credit." he replied taking a seat across from her. "It's the house elves. They work miracles."

She took a few bits of a delicious spinach and feta quiche and a drink from her goblet of pumpkin juice before asking what was really on her mind.

"So…why all the rumors then?" Her eyes stayed on her plate.

"Rumors? Oh, you mean about the sex god thing?" he laughed.

"Yeah, that. Why did you think it was necessary?"

"I didn't. Pansy thought everyone would be so jealous to be with me. And when the novelty of it wore off she started this rumor that I was so hot in bed. Then it just ballooned from there. But none of it was true. I let it go on for far too long."

Hermione giggled.

"Don't laugh. Male pressure is a bitch." he said eating some of his green beans.

"Let's change the subject." she said hiding her amusement.

"Agreed." he said looking back up at her.

Several awkward moments of silence passed before Hermione spoke again.

"Have you heard from your mum lately?" Hermione asked.

"Not since the letter inviting you to spend Easter holidays with us. Are you sure you are willing to give up a trip home?" he said.

"I'm sure. I would love to see your new home. And spend more time with your mum." she smiled.

"She's always wanted a daughter." he smirked.

"Well that would make you my brother and that's just wrong." she smiled back.

He made a disgusted face and she laughed out loud.

"That was really good. Thank you." she said pushing a half eaten plate away and patting her stomach. Her dress didn't leave much room for eating. It was a little tight as it was. He stood up and went over to her, taking her hand in his own and helping her to stand up. She knew it was coming. His soft lips were approaching hers fast. She tilted her head upwards and met him halfway. The tingling sensation ran through her body warming her from within. She had never felt the things she was feeling about him. His hand ran down the bare back of her dress and rested on the small of her back. Draco pulled her closer; breathing in her clean scent. He knew they were finally both ready. He took her hand and scooped her up into his arms. Draco made the slow ascent up the stairs to his bedroom. His room was dark and quiet with moonlight streaming through the tall, thin windows. He placed her gently on the bed and kissed her again pushing her down on her back as he did. She felt an odd flip-flop in the pit of her stomach as he lay on top of her. He kissed down her neck, leaving red marks as he went. She let a small moan escape her lips. He returned his gaze to hers and felt he needed to ask the question.

"Are you sure?" he whispered.

She nodded right away. She was more than ready. She knew he was the one. Her fingers trembled a bit as she unbuttoned his shirt and threw it on the floor of his room. His bare chest was something she thought about often. Smooth and pale she ran her hands up the front and then down the back of his torso. She sat up a bit and he unzipped her dress and pulled it off in one swift motion. The white silk under things nearly glowed in the pale moonlight. He kissed her again and she felt him growl low in his throat. She felt his hands run over the top of her breasts before reaching behind her and unhooking her bra. It was tossed unceremoniously to the floor with the rest of their clothing. His chest pressed against hers now and she could feel the hardness of him rubbing against her leg. She kept kissing him and reached down and unbuttoned his pants. They fell to the floor in one swift motion. He kicked them off as well. She was surprised that he was wearing nothing underneath. She knew that this was the point of no return. Not that her intentions were such. Hermione felt nervous and excited at the same time. She scooted back towards the head of the bed and he followed her, pursuing her like a tiger. In a split second he grabbed the sides of her panties and pulled them down her smooth legs. He lay down next to her, his hands roaming her curves. She nervously touched him back. He loved the look on her face as she concentrated on the task at hand. It was the same look she got when she was trying to learn a new charm or perfect a potion. It tickled him that she would take every aspect of her life that seriously. Her hand finally reached his erection. And when she made contact he nearly screamed out. Her soft hands stroked him in a way that he had only imagined. What she had done for him the other night was nothing compared to this. He didn't want to finish before they had began so he pushed her gently back on the bed and kissed her breasts, her stomach and finally her thighs. She moaned softly as her legs parted of their own free will. She wanted to feel that burning and that release that she had before. She took a deep breath and felt his hot mouth tickle her damp hair as he swirled his tongue around. She inhaled sharply, raising her knees before exhaling. She grabbed his head and pulled him up towards her face. She kissed him on the lips savoring every second of it. His erection pushed hard against her and she willingly let him in. Intense pressure gave way to a moment of pain. She cried out and he stopped immediately.

"Oh my gods," he whispered. "I'm so sorry." His right hand stroked her hair gently.

"It's alright." she said softly. "I promise I'll be fine."

"I didn't mean…"

She kissed him in mid-sentence making him forget what he was going to say. He didn't move for a moment just letting her get acquainted to him and enjoying her mouth upon his own. She moved her hips slightly letting him know that she was alright now and he started a slow steady motion as he kissed her neck and mouth, softly kneading her breasts at the same time. He could feel her heart beating out of control while kissing her breasts. He looked up at her again and she smiled softly at him. He had no idea if he was doing it right, or if she was enjoying it. Blaise had once shown him pictures in a magazine he had taken from his mom's new husband's drawer. It was nothing like this. Those women looked sleazy and worn. Hermione looked fresh and young and beautiful.

Hermione looked up at him, her breaths were labored. She knew she truly loved him. She could feel it in her soul. A single drop of sweat was running down his temple. He looked like he was concentrating on something. And being somewhat naive she couldn't imagine what that could be.

Draco felt like he couldn't hang on much longer. He gripped the sheets of the bed and cried out. He laid his head down on her hair and nestled himself there. Her arm went around him and pulled him tight to her own body. He trembled a bit before sliding off of her body. His soft sheets felt wonderfully refreshing and cool against his body and Hermione pulled the sheets up over them both and kissed him again.

"Was it okay?" he asked quietly.

"It was perfect." she said

He wasn't sure if that was exactly true but lying there next to her felt more perfect than he ever had in his whole life.


	22. How to make new friends

**A/N Sorry it's taken me so long to update this story. I had writer's block and tried to work on my other story. I think this one will be wrapping up soon. If you haven't read my other story. '19 years later' please do it and review! It's really good. I hope you enjoy this. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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How to make new friends

The next morning dawned with a blanket of fresh snow on the Hogwart's grounds. It was bitter cold outside but Hermione and Draco were still snuggled under the blankets of Draco's bed. Hermione woke first, rubbing her eyes at her unfamiliar surroundings. Still naked she tried to pull a sheet around her so that she could use the restroom and perform a contraceptive spell before it was too late. She tiptoed to the bathroom did what she needed to and tried to get back into bed before Draco woke up. But when she returned he was awake and smiling.

"Morning." he said stretching.

"Good morning." she replied climbing back onto the bed and kissing him on the lips.

"How did you sleep?" he asked.

"Like a log, what time is it?" she wondered. Being late for class again was not a good idea.

"Its only 7:45. I hate these cloudy grey days."

"Me too." she replied snuggling her head on his chest. Class didn't start for over an hour.

"How are you this morning?" he asked cautiously.

"Fine. Why?"

"I thought I might have hurt you."

"No, I'm fine. Thank you for your concern though." she kissed him again and let her hand wander down his bare chest.

"Don't start something you can't finish Miss Granger." he growled into her mouth. She laughed.

"I suppose you are right." she said taking her hand off of his bare skin immediately. She got up and began to pick up her items of clothing. Draco groaned.

"You are going to kill me eventually." he sighed flopping back down onto his bed.

"There were times when I imagined it." she laughed. "Will you have breakfast at our table this morning?"

"No, I don't think so." he said. "I'll just grab something and leave. Eating in the hall has become very uncomfortable."

"It doesn't have to be." she said. "Harry and Ginny are willing. And Ron, well you can just ignore him." she laughed.

"No, they are your friends, not mine. I have no friend's here." he said with sadness in his voice.

"I'm your friend." she said sitting on the bed next to him. "As long as you want me to be."

He couldn't help but smile at her.

"Thanks. But I still don't want to eat with the bloody Gryffindors. I will see you later today, alright?" he said reaching out to stroke her hair.

She nodded and kissed him briefly on the cheek before leaving his room and heading to her own. She dressed quickly and headed out the portrait hole. She was not surprised to find Ginny waiting for her.

"So?" Ginny asked.

Hermione gave her a puzzled look.

"So what?" she replied.

"You and Malfoy…"

"Yes, me and Draco…" she said purposefully eluding questions about her relationship.

"Come off it Hermione! I want details. Lots and lots of details. Start with when you got back to your quarters and don't stop until you wake up with him this morning." she gushed.

"Ginny…" Hermione sighed. She didn't want the world to know what had happened. It was a private moment. She started walking down the hallway without her.

"Hermione! Are you going to tell me that you and he haven't…you know?" Ginny whispered loudly.

"I'm going to tell you that my business is my business." Hermione said slyly.

Ginny turned red and smiled.

"So you're telling me that you did…" she grinned.

"No."

"So you didn't."

"I'm not saying that either." Hermione laughed.

"I think you owe me." Ginny pouted. "I kept your secret all these months."

"Oh Ginny." Hermione said as they reached the great hall. "Another time alright?"

Ginny seemed pacified for the moment. Harry and Ron were seated at the table already, Ron shoveling food into his mouth and not paying attention to anything else.

"Is your _boyfriend_ eating with us?" Harry asked winking at Hermione.

"No." she replied sadly.

Ron looked up at that point and smiled with a mouth full of food.

"Best news I've heard all morning." Ron said in between sips of juice.

"Ron!" Ginny said. "I thought we were all going to be civil to Draco."

"Holy Merlin's arse! Are we all going to call him Draco now? Or how about Drakey? Jeez, I said I would put up with it. I didn't say I wanted to pick out drapery or anything with the guy."

Harry spat out juice spraying Ron on his face. He couldn't control his laugher. Ginny giggled as well and even Hermione thought Ron's comment was funny.

"What's so funny?" Hermione heard a voice say from behind her. She grinned.

"Nothing." she smiled. "Will you please join us?"

"No, I can't." he said looking at the table of grinning Gryffindors. Harry could hardly contain the laughter. Even Ron laughed under his breath. "I was just going to grab some toast and jam before doing patrols."

"Oh, alright." Hermione said. Draco grabbed his quick breakfast and touched Hermione's shoulder before heading out of the great hall.

"Bye Drakey." Harry said just loud enough for the whole group to hear. Ron burst into laughter and sprayed Harry with oatmeal. Hermione pursed her lips and hoped Draco didn't hear them. She grabbed some toast and hurried after him.

"Wait up." she called just as he was at the steps.

"Don't you want to eat with your friends?" he asked.

"I do. _All _of them." she said grabbing his hand and pulling him down to sit on the steps with her.

"What were you all laughing at?" he asked. Hermione couldn't help but laugh again.

"Something silly. Ginny called you by your first name…" she said giggling.

"And my first name is funny?" he said angrily.

"No, no…then Ron…" she laughed. "Ron asked if they all had to call you by your first name, or if he should call you Drakey."

He stared at her.

"It was funny because they are making an effort. They take the mickey out of everyone in our group it is all in good fun. Why don't you try to get to know them? Then I could eat with all my friends whenever I wanted."

"I don't know…" he said. "Things have never been friendly between us."

"They are trying." she reminded him.

He shrugged his shoulders and fiddled with the toast.

Hermione had a realization. She realized that all the pompous swaggering he used to do, all the nasty things he used to say to everyone, it was all just a cover. He was insecure about making friends with her friends. He was afraid of not being accepted. It touched her.

"Come one back. You don't have to talk. Just sit and maybe get to know one of them at a time. Ginny would be easy for you to talk to."

He kept looking at the toast.

"It would mean a lot to me." she pleaded.

"Alright. Maybe it won't be so bad." he said standing up as she took his hand in her own.

"Thank you." she smiled as she led him back into the great hall. Ginny smiled widely as they couple came back in, holding hands. Hermione sat him in between herself and Ginny. Harry didn't look happy and he made it known that he and Ginny were an item by placing his arm around her shoulders.

"Hi." Ginny said brightly. "Decided to join us after all?" she asked.

"Yes." he said quietly.

"Good!" she smiled.

Draco looked extremely uncomfortable as he wiggled in his seat.

"Draco you are close to Professor Snape…" Ginny began. "He wants us to go outside and find this ingredient. Any ideas?" she handed him a list of potion ingredients. Draco scanned it and found the one she needed.

"He's making it hard for you. Go to the green house and ask Professor Sprout. She'll hand them over." he replied.

"Oh, really? Thanks!" Ginny said taking her paper back and nudging Harry to say something.

"Uh, Malfoy…" Harry said awkwardly.

"Hmmm?"

"Have you been keeping up with Quidditch this year? The canons might come in next to last instead of last."

"No, I haven't had a chance to catch up yet." he said looking at Hermione to rescue him.

"I have all the scores from the past few months written down in our common room. Do you support anyone in particular?"

"The Falcons." Draco replied

"Oh, they're doing quite well this year. Third I believe." Harry said finally wanting to talk to him about something.

"The canons could still pull forward." Ron said.

"Please…there are only five games left before the playoffs." Ginny said.

"Stranger things have happened." Ron said eyeing Hermione and Draco. Draco couldn't help but laugh at that.

"Very true. But that would take a miracle." Harry said. "And I think people in charge of those have other things to think of besides the canons."

Ron scowled but smiled all the same.

Fairly soon the conversation was completely about Quidditch and Hermione was the one who felt left out. But she didn't mind. Draco was getting along with her friends and she couldn't ask for much more than that.

Soon the hall began to empty as everyone got off to class. Hermione had Arithmacy first period Ginny had double potions and. Draco, Ron and Harry all had a free period.

"How about some two on one Quidditch?" Harry suggested. "Ron can be keeper and we can toss the quaffle and try to get it past him."

"It's freezing outside!" Ron shouted.

"Scared?" Draco said with a smile. Ron turned red.

"We will meet you back down here in five minutes." Harry said racing up the stairs. Draco started up the steps but felt someone following close behind.

"Going to play with your new _friends_?" Pansy whined.

"Piss off." Draco said reaching the top and turning a corner trying to avoid her.

"Do you honestly think they will accept you after all you did to them?" she asked. "Maybe they will not even show up to play Quidditch; they will be sitting up in their common room laughing at you. And you will be down there all alone." she teased.

"Shut up you cow." he hissed. But there was something to what she was saying. Maybe they were planning to stand him up. How would he feel then?

'Hermione wouldn't put up with that, would she?' he wondered. 'She doesn't have full control of them…she's not her mother.' he reasoned. He didn't even hear Pansy taunting him when he entered the shared common room, slamming the portrait in her face. He sat down in front of the bare fireplace and wondered what to do. He would be putting himself out there if he went and they didn't show up. Pansy would be sure to be waiting to laugh and point it out to Zabini and the other Slytherin lugs. But on the other hand if he was the one who didn't show up and they waited he would look like a prat and Hermione would be mad. He didn't want to lose her after just finding her.

"Crap." he said aloud.

He decided to go, but to stand to the side and wait to see if they came. If they didn't he could slip out one of the passages under the staircase. Pansy would never know. And if they did he could rub it in his former friend's faces. He ran up and grabbed his broomstick, a coat, some gloves and a hat before heading back out the portrait hole; keeping his eye out for Pansy or the other goons and running down into the main entryway. He slipped under the right staircase and waited. Ten minutes passed and Harry and Ron hadn't shown up yet. The only one standing there was an odd blonde girl with bulging blue eyes. She stared around at the entry hall as if she had never laid eyes on it a day in her life. She skipped around in a circle, leafed through a magazine and used her wand to float a piece of paper around like a bird. Still no sign of Ron and Harry.

"Screw this." Draco said. Just then the girl called out to him.

"Hey Draco!" she said in a dreamy voice.

"Yes?" he asked looking at her oddly. "Do I know you?"

"I don't think so…but I have a note for you." she replied handing him the paper bird.

"Uh…thanks?" he said unfolding the bird and seeing Potter's handwriting.

_We went outside to the pitch. Meet us there._

_Harry_

He hoped that this wasn't all some colossal joke. He walked out the heavy doors into the snow. It was bitter cold but the lack of wind helped. He made it to the pitch and saw Harry already zooming around on his Firebolt. Draco kicked his Nimbus 2001 and reminded himself to buy a new broom next time he was in Hogsmeade. He took off into the air towards the other boys.

"Hey." Harry called. "What took you so long?"

"I ran into a whiney cow in a Hogwarts uniform." he replied.

Ron snorted. Harry tossed him the quaffle which he caught easily.

"First to ten?" Draco asked tossing the ball up and down in his hand. Harry nodded.

"What makes you think I would allow ten goals from either of you?" Ron said hovering in front of the three hoops. Draco tossed the ball into the air and swung the back of his broom around like a bat hitting the quaffle into the hoop on the far right.

"Hey!" Ron shouted. "I wasn't ready."

"That's one for me." Draco grinned. And Harry actually smiled back.


	23. How to serve detention

**A/N Hello everyone! I'm sorry it took me so long to update. The next one will not take as long. Unfortunatly the story will be coming to an end soon so I hope you will read my other story if you haven't already. Happy reading and don't forget to review!

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How to serve detention

The three boys entered Hogwarts two hours later, frozen to the bone and wiping wet snow from their hair.

"I can't believe you let in so many goals Ron!" Harry laughed.

"Shut up." Ron replied red-faced.

"He played better than he used to." Draco commented as he shook the snow from his hair, spraying Ron in the process.

"Watch it!" Ron laughed.

Draco was honestly surprised that he was getting on so well with the two of them. It was as if the past six and half years had been forgotten, although he was sure that wasn't the case. But it was nice all the same.

"I need to work on my potions assignments" Harry sighed. "I've been putting it off for days."

"I'm a bit behind as well." Draco said aloud.

"Meet us at the library?" Harry asked.

Draco nodded.

"See you in ten minutes." he replied before heading off to his quarters to change.

Draco felt oddly buoyant as he went to put on dry clothes. Talking to Ron and Harry was much easier than he had imagined. It was like having actual friends, not minions. When he arrived in the common room he found Hermione sitting in front of the fire reading.

"How was it?" she asked tentatively.

"Great." he replied. "I stomped Potter into the ground."

Hermione grimaced.

"How did he take that?"

"I think he was miffed at Weasley for allowing so many goals but it was in good fun. I'm changing then going to work on our potions assignments with them in the library."

Hermione absolutely beamed.

He leaned down and kissed her softly.

"Thanks, I needed that." he said.

"You can kiss me anytime." she said softly.

"I meant Potter and Weasley."

"Oh…well you are welcome for that too, though I don't know what I had to do with that. I knew you would get along with them if you both gave each other a chance."

Draco smiled.

"I'm going to change."

He rushed up the stairs and tore off his wet, cold clothes. He put on an ivory sweater and dark blue jeans before heading back down to Hermione and grabbing his potions book off of the table.

"Would you like to come along?"

"Wouldn't I be ruining your 'guy' time?" she giggled.

"Of course not."

"I think I'll stay here and finish reading."

"Have it your way." he said flashing a dazzling smile, kissing her forehead and heading back out the portrait hole.

The library was crowded with students prepping for upcoming midterm exams. He was Ron and Harry sitting at a table for four in the corner of the first floor. They waved him over.

"Hey." Harry said. "Where's Hermione?"

"Reading." Draco replied. "I asked her to come along but she wanted to finish whatever it was."

"Typical Hermione." Ron snorted. "She's probably four weeks ahead on her assignments."

"Being away for so long didn't help." Draco replied.

"Speaking of that…" Harry started. "What was the deal with that? Why did Dumbledore sent you two off?"

"To learn to get along. I guess it worked too well." Draco grinned sheepishly.

"I wonder if he knew that would happen." Harry said aloud. "He is sneaky in that way."

Draco grinned. He suspected that Harry was right about that. Maybe he'd have to thank Dumbledore for it one day.

"So is it serious with you and 'Mione?" Ron asked. His face was hardly even red.

Draco shrugged.

"I've invited her to stay with my mum and myself for the Easter holidays. My mum adores her."

"Seriously?" Harry asked. "When did she even meet her?"

"At Christmas time. Hermione asked Dumbledore to let my mum come see us. As my present."

"So is she going then?" Ron asked.

"She said she would. It'll be strange. I haven't even laid eyes on my new house yet."

"So potions…we should probably copy down the ingredient list." Ron said after a moment of awkward silence.

Draco smiled as he copied from the book feeling better than he had in a long time.

Meanwhile Hermione had finished her reading and was going to head over to the library to see how the three of them were getting along. To her misfortune she spotted Pansy and Blaise on the way there. She was alone in the hallway and knew this would be sticky.

"If it isn't the princess of Slytherin." Pansy taunted. "Why she must have lost her prince Blaise."

"Ten points from Slytherin." Hermione said irritably.

"Now that Drakey is dirt poor he can finally give you the life you are used to." Pansy sung.

"Twenty points and detention with Filch."

"Whatever mud…"

"Is there a problem Parkinson?" Hermione heard a small but determined voice behind her.

"Well if it isn't a _Weasley_…" Pansy sneered. "Come to rescue little miss perfect?"

"I doubt very much if Hermione needs rescuing. I'm just wondering why she hasn't cursed you lot into slugs yet."

"Because I'm better than they are." Hermione replied. "I'm not going to break the rules so that they can run off to the headmaster." She folded her arms across her chest.

"Let's go Pans…" Blaise mumbled. He obviously didn't like that it was a fair fight now. And with Crabbe and Goyle nowhere in sight his self-preservation kicked in. Pansy pursed her lips until they all but disappeared.

"You aren't going anywhere." Hermione reminded them. "I'm taking you to your head of house."

"Oooh…" Pansy taunted. "Like professor Snape will do anything about it. He's probably said worse about you."

Hermione's cheeks flushed.

"Let's go." she said trying not to give them any more ammo. Hermione aimed her wand at them and marched them down the stairs until they reached the entrance to the dungeons. Ginny sniggered the entire way causing Pansy to send her death glares. The door to Snape's office was closed so Hermione knocked tentatively.

"Come in." she heard him call in his low, dangerous voice.

"Professor?" Hermione replied in her own small voice. "Professor, I need you to assign detention to these two." Ginny shoved Pansy and Blaise into the cramped office.

"What have they done now?" Snape asked wearily.

"Same as before sir. Causing disruptions and name calling. I will be going to the headmaster about this sir. I just wanted you to have a chance to deal with them before I do."

"Would you do me a favor Miss Granger?" Snape asked. His voice was very nearly kind.

"Of course sir." she replied at once.

"Let me deal with them. I'm sure Dumbledore would be hard on them, but I'm sure you realize that I can be quite a bit harder."

A smile spread across Hermione and Ginny's face. Pansy and Blaise gawked at their head of house.

"But sir…" Pansy started to protest.

"Silence!" he shouted at her. "You have disgraced this house for the last time. You are behaving like first years! Now for your punishment…" he said, pausing for dramatic effect. "I think cleaning something would give you two a dose of reality. Without magic of course…"

"If I may sir," Hermione said speaking up. "The house elves have had a hard time keeping up with cleaning the many bathrooms about the castle. Pansy could clean the girl's bathrooms and Blaise the boys. I'm sure it would help out a great deal."

"I am NOT cleaning bathrooms." Pansy shouted.

"Me either. I was trying to get this cow to leave anyway when she was taunting Miss Granger." Blaise said in his most innocent voice.

"You were not!" Ginny said, her face turning very red.

He glared at hr.

"You will both be on bathroom duty for the next month. Any complaints and it will be two months. Fail to do as you are told and I will make sure the headmaster expels you. Is that very clear?"

Pansy and Blaise nodded.

"Miss Granger and Miss Weasley take them to Filch with this note." he said handing her a scrap of folded up parchment. "Thank you for bringing this to my attention."

"You're welcome Professor." Hermione said blushing a bit before directing the two Slytherins out of the door and up the stairs towards Filch's office. Hermione had never been there before but she had a vague idea where it was. When they delivered the scowling pair to him he was almost overcome with joy. He hadn't properly punished anyone since the Weasley twins had left.

"I was heading to the library Ginny. Harry, Ron and Draco are there studying." she said.

Ginny looked like an owl had just flew right into her face.

"Are you serious?" she asked.

"Very." Hermione replied. "They seem to be getting on okay."

"I never would have dreamed it, not in a million years." Ginny said as they climbed the staircase towards the library.

"But I think it's good don't you?" Hermione asked uncertain. "I mean if I'm going to be spending more time with Draco then my other friends should be alright with that…you are aren't you?"

"Of course I am. I mean look at him. He's incredibly gorgeous and if I didn't have Harry I would be insanely jealous." she said grinning.

"Shut up." Hermione teased. "I'm glad Ron is trying as well. I thought for sure he would take much longer than he did."

"Well as long as Mal…I mean Draco treats you alright then I think Ron will behave. He doesn't want to lose you as a friend."

When they reached the library Ginny asked if she could be the one to break the news about Pansy and Blaise. Hermione stifled a giggle and nodded.

The boys were easy to find. Ginny leaned over and pecked Harry on the cheek.

"You will never guess what we've been doing." Ginny practically sung.

Harry raised his eyebrows and gave Draco a meaningful look. Draco snorted.

"Not that!" Ginny cried out.

"Well what then?" Ron asked, confused by the innuendo.

"We've just only taken Pansy and Blaise to detention with Filch. They will be cleaning bathrooms, without magic for the next month. Isn't that great?"

Harry and Ron laughed loudly causing Madame Pince to give them a warning look and they promptly stopped.

Draco furrowed his eyebrows into a worried look.

"What happened?" he asked Hermione who had taken a seat next to him.

"Same thing as every time I run into them. But Snape took care of it."

Draco didn't smile but he dropped the worried look and relaxed.

Hermione leaned over and kissed him on the forehead, the nose and finally his lips.

"Awkward." Harry said jokingly. Hermione blushed deeply.

"Sorry." she muttered. "I didn't realize it would bother the king of pda."

Ron laughed loudly again causing Madame Pince to usher them out of the library.

"And don't come back" she called "Until you can behave yourselves."

The five of them left through the heavy wooden doors laughing louder than ever.


	24. How to come home

A/N I am soooooo sorry for the long delay in updating. I promise to wrap up this story very soon!! Happy reading and don't forget to review!**

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**How to come home**

The Easter holidays came quickly. A little too quickly if you asked Draco for his opinion. He wasn't quite sure if he was mentally prepared to see his new house and spend the entire week with his mother and Hermione.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked her uncertainly the night before they were to leave.

"For the millionth time Draco yes." she replied as she packed her suitcase carefully.

"I just don't want you to feel…obligated." he sighed. "I know my mum would love to see you again but if you would rather see your family…"

"Ugh!" Hermione cried. "I never go home for the holidays Draco. My parents are used to it by now, besides…I want to be there for you. This can't be easy."

She was right, and he knew it. But it was still weighing on his mind that night. They were sleeping in Hermione's room that night. (She claimed that the Slytherin colors were giving her a headache) So they took turns in each other's rooms. She was laying across his chest, her chestnut hair spread across his pale skin His long fingers intertwined in the mess of curls. She kissed his chest softly causing goose bumps to erupt on his arms. He smiled into the darkness. She kept kissing her way up towards his mouth until she was lying on top of him, only a t-shirt separating her bare skin from his. She sat up and removed the offending garment and looked down at him. For all he knew he could be looking at an angel. The moonlight washed over her skin giving her an unearthly glow.

"You are so beautiful." he said softly. She blushed.

"You don't have to seduce me anymore…" she teased. Leaning over him, her hair covering her breasts.

"Who's seducing who?" he joked. She blushed again.

"I didn't think I needed to do that anymore either." she said breathing close to his face, her sweet smell washing over him.

"I think I like it when you do though." he replied pulling her down for a soft kiss.

He pulled her to his lips and kissed her fiercely. He was still getting used to the idea of Hermione truly wanting to be with him. It seemed almost too good to be true. He flipped her over onto her back without breaking the kiss. He loved the look on her face right before they made love. It was a hint of anticipation mixed with lust and maybe a tiny bit of fear. Her eyes were wide as they watched him run his hands down her body and remove her knickers with ease. By the time he kissed his way back up to her mouth her legs were wide and inviting. She gasped as he entered her, taking time to let her full appreciate him and for him to appreciate her in return. He moved slowly, balancing precariously on his one hand while he stroked her hair with the other. She reached up and kissed his neck and the hollow of his throat; tasting the small beads of sweat on his smooth skin. She could feel the pulse running through his veins as she placed her lips against his neck. It quickened as she explored him. He cleared his throat in a nervous way.

"Now how on earth could _I _be making _you _nervous?" she laughed.

He kissed her again, more aggressively this time. Hermione clutched his hair with both hands, loving the feeling of the silkiness on her fingertips. Loving the way he made her feel when they were all alone and she didn't have to play down how much she really cared about him. She felt utterly and completely at peace when she came, the feeling of bliss rushing into her body and extending to every inch of her. She sighed heavily and stroked Draco's hair as he collapsed next to her.

"Feel better?" she asked him.

"Much." he sighed.

"Don't worry about tomorrow. Everything will be fine." Hermione whispered as he fell asleep on her chest.

Hermione fussed the next morning over her choice of clothing.

"How's this?" she asked after changing into her fifth outfit.

"You look beautiful." he replied. His eyes appraising her in a very approving way.

"I just want to look nice for your mother." she sighed. Her hands smoothing the wrinkles out of a baby blue cashmere sweater and khaki skirt.

"We are going to miss the train." he reminded her.

"Okay. I'm ready I guess." she said.

"You're not nervous are you?" he joked.

"No, no…of course not." she said quickly.

"Good, because my mum loves you." he said kissing her on then nose. "Now let's go."

The train ride back to London seemed to take forever. The endless trees passed turning into a green and brown blur as the train picked up speed. Hermione stated out into the vast countryside letting the landscape hypnotize her. She didn't even hear the door to their compartment open as her friends piled in with her and Draco.

"Hermione?" Ginny asked breaking her concentration.

"Oh, Ginny!" she said surprised. "Sorry."

"Are you excited?" Ginny whispered. "About the whole 'meet the parents' thing?"

"I've already met his mum, on the island. She's very nice. And no, it's not that."

"Then what?" Ginny prodded.

"I'm not sure. My stomach is in knots."

"Just relax, I'm sure things will be fine." she reassured Hermione, but Hermione wasn't buying it.

"Yeah, I suppose so." she replied fidgeting. Harry sat down next to Ginny and put his arm behind both girls.

"So a whole week at the Malfoy's huh?" he laughed.

"Yes." she blushed unintentionally.

Draco smirked.

"You boys!" Hermione said, her face redder than a Weasley's.

Just then Pansy and Blaise walked by the compartment. They were about to enter when Draco stood up and to his surprise so did Potter and Weasley. Pansy gave them a look to kill and went off with Blaise trailing behind her.

"Don't let it bother you." Ron told him. "If I got into a fight every time someone insulted me or my family…"

"What are you talking about Ron?" Ginny asked. "You do."

They all laughed as the train sped along.

When they pulled into King's Cross station everyone said their goodbyes and took off into different directions. Draco grabbed Hermione's bag and pulled it alongside his.

"Is your mum picking us up?" she asked.

"No, we're apperating there."

"Oh alright." Hermione said nervously. She hated apperating somewhere that she hadn't been before. It made things very difficult.

They left the station and went into a deserted alley. He took her by the hand and she felt the familiar swirl of apperation before landing on a soft, damp lawn in the countryside.

"I don't see a house Draco." she said scanning the hills.

"Fidelius charm. Here." he said giving her the small piece of paper.

"Oh." she said. The handwriting on the paper was beautiful and elegant almost calligraphy. She read aloud.

"Narcissa Malfoy's home is at 5526 Ivywood lane." And just like that a large, beautiful home stretched out before them. It looked like it had been there for centruries, but it also had a modern feel to it. Nothing ostentatious, just elegant and inviting. They started walking towards the house passing by thick hedges and large, fragrant bushes of every color rose. The smell was intoxicating and clung to the thick air. The house itself was white, with deep blue doors and shutters. The gardens were something out of a child's fairtytale. A small brook babbled and flowed alongside the walkway.

"It's amazing." Hermione said. "I've never seen such a beautiful place."

Several brightly colored birds flew overhead and landed in a shrub nearby.

"I have to agree on that." Draco said as they reached the front doorway. He set the bags down and knocked.

"It's your house." Hermione whispered. "I'm pretty sure you can go in."

He flushed.

"It just doesn't seem like home." he sighed.

A tiny elf answered the door and ushered them in.

"Welcome Master Draco." he squeaked. "And Mistress Hermione."

"Just Hermione please." she said as she looked around. The small foyer had a painting of the Malfoys in it. Draco was much smaller in the painting, maybe 8 or 9. He scowled down at her and she shivered.

"Cute painting." she said sarcastically.

"Thanks." he replied. "I always hated that painting."

"Draco!" they heard coming from the parlor. Narcissa appeared at the doorway smiling from ear to ear. "My boy, my son. Come in and sit down. Hermione! How lovely to see you too, come sit and have some tea."

Narcissa looked beautiful and radiant. The pale colors of the room made her look as if she was lit from within. She hugged her son warmly.

"I'm so glad to have you home."

"Me too mum." he replied. She turned to Hermione and embraced her.

"Thank you so much for spending the holiday with us. It feels like a home to have you both here."

"I'm glad you invited me." Hermione replied.

"This is very different from the manor." Draco commented. "Much lighter."

"Thank you honey." she replied. "I wanted it to be the opposite of what I was used to. A fresh start."

"It's lovely." Hermione said. Narcissa smiled warmly.

"Well let's get your things to your rooms before tea." she told them. "Top of the stairs, Draco your room is to the left. The guest room for you Hermione is to the right."

Draco grabbed the suitcases and headed up the white staircase. The carpet on each step was thick and palest blue. They reached Draco's room first and he opened the door with a sigh. The room was quite large with two large windows and a set of French doors that opened onto a small balcony overlooking the gardens. It was done in light colors, a silvery grey on the walls, a deeper grey on the floors. His bed seemed suspended in the middle of the room. It had no headboard or footboard, it seemed to float over the carpeting. The linens were white with silver stitching. It was a very calm, serene room.

"Wow, it's just gorgous." Hermione said. Draco didn't look happy.

"My old room was better. Deep wood colors and green linens."

"How did I know that?" Hermione laughed. "It's perfect."

Draco shrugged.

"Let's put your things away." he said taking her bag and heading out the door to the room across the hall from his.

Hermione's room was smaller but just as beautiful. It had a big iron bed with whispy white linens draped over the top. The walls were a pale blue and all the bed things were white. A bouquet of wildflowers were sitting on top of the dresser by the window. She set her bag on top of the bed and unpacked her clothes. Draco was still scowling.

"I can't imagine why you have that look on your face." she said.

"It just doesn't seem like home." he replied.

"It will." She said hugging him tightly. "Just give it time."


End file.
